“Fuck me!” Kyle says as he gets off the ground. “Can you please stop hitting me into walls? It gets old really fast.” Looking through the gaping hole in the wall and noticed that Greg wasn’t there anymore. “Shit.” Was all he could say as many possibilities flashed through his head one at a time at a rapid pace like a machine gun. He overall concluded that Greg could be dead.
I don’t want to believe that but it feels like I have no other choice but to accept that. I know he’s strong but I don’t believe he’ll be able to stand up to that guy like that. I need to get out of here, I don't want to deal with this shit anymore.Yet, he hasn’t come back for me. If he killed Greg wouldn’t he have come back to finish me off, or at least attempt to.
He pondered even more.
Then does this mean Greg is still alive. Most likely. Maybe he’s hiding out until I help him out. Maybe…
No! That has to be it. I gotta find him, and we’ll get out of this together. But where the hell would I start?
Gazing his eyes over through the smashed wall and pictured the entire scene in his mind. Predicting where Greg would run off to.
Did he go backwards? To the right? Or to the left?
The options spun around in his head like a carousel. It was hard to say, there was only a thirty three percent chance his guess was right. He needed to get it correct.
C’mon think! If I was Greg where would I run off to?
That last question was the perfect boost to get him on the right path.
My god! It’s so obvious now! If I went barreling into here, there’s no way he would run towards me. And he wouldn’t head back either. He wouldn’t be stupid to run to an area where there’s no other rooms. There was a turn at the end of the right hallway facing that room where I exploded those stacked up clothes. Funny when I say it out loud. But that had to be where he ran off to.
Collectively coming to a decision that he was undoubtedly right in, he marched forward and sprinted down the hallway after him.
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Greg swinged around the corner and headed directly for a door that was right in front of him. Loud and continuous bangs and gusts of air echoes through the liminal hallways. Flinging the door open and looking inside he saw multiple office cubicles. Computer screens flashed with imagery of numbers flying by and charts filled with data that was unknown to him. Chairs were knocked over and some of the cubicle walls were torn down.
Closing the door slowly, as to not tick off any hint that may lead to his location, he quickly hid in one of the cubicles. Tucking his knees under the desk and praying that the scientist just passes by.
“Fuck why did I design this place like this!” He heard the man yelling.
He was getting rapidly closer by the second as he could hear the bat banging on the metallic walls. The sound stopped directly at the front door.
“This is a very nice contraption.” His muffled voice could be heard behind the door. “Did you build it yourself?” The door was blown off its hinges as it flew across the room and broke apart as it smashed into the wall.
Greg shivered in fear as he heard the loud clomping of the man’s footsteps draw near.
“I wonder if you even have the engineering prowess to even construct such a complicated machine.” He held down the button and blasted a huge wave, destroying all of the cubicles in one row. It was pretty close to where Greg was hiding out. The huge gusts blew his hair around.
He got out from under the desk and crawled over on the floor very sneakily. Looking beneath the little space between the cubicle wall and the floor, there was a little crack where he could see the guy’s large black leather boots.
“Do you!?” He shouted as he blasted another column of cubicles. The plastic walls and chairs all smash into the wall. It was like a hurricane contained in one small room.
Greg was like a dog as he rushed down rows of booths on all fours. Getting to the last row as he watched as the guy continuously blasted row after row.
“What a bunch of wasted talent!”
Greg heard him hold down the button and he leapt out into the open space as soon as the huge gusts took out the last remaining cubicles. The capsule of the blast carried over and spread throughout the room and launched Greg across the whole space and smacked into the wall.
“I knew you were in here.” The guy said. “Someone like you would pick the most obvious place in this whole area to hide. Looks like this is where your road ends.”
Greg was able to get onto his feet. Struggling as his leg was aching in pain from the bash.
“It must suck really. Getting killed by your own piece of work. It really is embarrassing.” He started laughing.
A brief flash of life engulfed Greg’s vision as his mind started to cloud up. It slowly turned from disfigured formations into a visible image. It slowly started to clear up and he was starting to remember.
Mom?
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“Come on.” His father called out to him. “Time to go!”
“I don’t want to!” Greg yelled from his room.
“Don’t do this now! Get down here this fucking instant or I’ll come up there and drag you down to the car myself!”
He reluctantly opened the door to his room and slammed it. Walking casually down the stairs he picked up his jacket and put it on.
“Good, now let’s get going. Don’t want to be late.” He opened the front door and the sound of rain droplets plunged into the cement ground boomed from outside. It was fairly heavy, with gutters around the street flooding up.
They both walk to the car in the pouring rain and get in. None of them said a word to each other as they drove all the way to a hospital. Typical looking building with the porcelain white colors that made it stand out through the whole city. The red cross that matched the design of a plus sign. He turned into the parking lot and found a spot and perfectly placed the car there. The engine shut off and the little beeping from the car stopped and the silence stood still between them.
“You ready bud?” His father turned to him and patted him on the shoulder.
“Yeah.” He sulked down into his seat.
“Alright then, let’s go.” He opened up the car door and stepped out.
Greg was a little hesitant but he eventually built up the courage to get out. Slowly opening the door ajar he stepped out into a puddle and rushed over to the overhang of the hospital entrance.
Heading inside, his father was talking to the woman at the desk. The woman gave him the room number and pointed in the direction of the elevator. His father made a hand gesture that signaled to him to come over.
Stepping into the elevator, he pushed the button to floor four. It roared to life and went soaring all the way up. Stopping at the floor suddenly and the doors slide open.
Strolling down the hallway they passed by multiple nurses caring for patients. In the distance he heard some muffled sobbing from a room right next to where his mother lay.
His father approached the door and knocked on it gently. A nurse greeted him and they were both let in. Greg saw the horrific state his mother was in.
She was pale white and was completely bald. A breathing tube was hooked up to her nostrils with the heart monitor beeping with every heavy breath she took. The ventilator pumped more air into her as her chest pulsed up and down.
“Mrs. Tilton.” The nurse held her hand. “Your husband and son are here.”
She slowly tilted her head and looked at them with her almost lifeless eyes that were slightly squinted. “Greg?” Her rigid voice squeaked out, having a little reverb inside the tube.
“Yes honey.” His father kneeled down and caressed her head. “It’s us.”
“Great, I was wondering when you’ll finally visit me.”
“We stopped by yesterday. Don’t you remember?”
“Did you?”
“Yes.”
She tilted her head up to face the ceiling. “Must’ve forgotten then.” All of a sudden she started to cough violently.
“Mom!?” Greg cried out.
The nurse was quick to her aide and injected her with some medicine and she was able to get her into stable condition. Once everything calmed down the nurse walked to his father and whispered something in his ear and walked out of the room.
“Greg.” His mother’s weak voice grew more faint. “Come here.”
He was still for a good second until he slowly started to step forward and came very close to his mother. He held her hand as she leaned her head over to his ear.
“I want you to know something.” She started. “There’s a prototype in the attic. I want you to have it.”
“Prototype? What’re you talking about?”
“Greg, listen to me. It’s a bat. I want you to try it out. It’s not fully complete, but I left it just for you. It’s a shame really. I didn’t get enough time to finish it. What kind of mother am I? Not even leaving a finished parting gift.”
“No. Don’t say that. I love you.”
She then started to cough violently and started spazzing out in her bed. She was having a seizure.
“Mom!” He cried out once again.
Doctors came rushing in and came to her aid. He ordered both of them to get out while they tended to her. Greg was screaming as his father had to carry him out.
Tears started to form and dribble down his cheeks. The words his mother said to him stuck in his head and echoed throughout his vast mind.
There’s a prototype in the attic.
With tears streaming down his face he broke away from his father and started running down the hallway, knocking into several nurses.
“Greg!” His father shouted. “You get back here now!” His voice was completely void as he ignored him completely and kept running.
He leapt down the stairs and rushed out of the hospital doors and into the pouring rain. Running out of the parking lot and into the street, almost getting hit by a car.
He started sprinting all the way back home, not stopping for any obstacle that got in his way. He ran past stoplights, even if there were a huge wave of cars coming. Almost knocking into people taking a jog and even tripping over some dogs. Puddles were splashed underneath his feet as he finally made it to the house.
Bursting through the door he headed upstairs in a flash. Making it to the top he turned right and at the end of the hallway in the ceiling, there was a little latch that came from a panel.
He reached it by standing straight on his tippy-toes. Yanking the chain down, a ladder fell to the floor with a loud bang as dust repelled off and floated down to the ground.
He put his cold hands on the wooden outline of the ladder and started climbing up. The squishing of his boots is louder than ever before. He reached the top and peered his head to see complete and total darkness.
He was prepared for that, and he pulled out a flashlight that he got from a drawer downstairs before he ran up. Shining it in and lighting up the whole room.
It was incredibly dirty and dusty, cobwebs were scattered around in little corners. Some cockroaches scurried away, the little pitter patters of their stick legs drew further away until they were completely gone.
Boxes upon boxes were stacked up in the corner near a hexagonal window. But on the other side of that, there was a tip of something sticking out. Getting on his knees and crawling he was able to draw near it more.
He was able to draw it out more clearly and realized what was sticking out was the knob of a baseball bat. He tugged on it and it unsheathed itself. There was a note that was plastered on its blue and white pattern. At the base of the bat it had a company logo on it.
Suffort, the text in the middle read out. It was encased by a tilted square that had little screws and bolts sticking out of it. Greg recognized it as the company his mom worked at. He peeled the note off and began to read it.
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Dear Greg, I may not be around when you read this. I hid this away from you and your father because I knew that he would get mad if he found out that I was working while I was sick. Also, he’ll most likely take this for himself. Remember this is all for you, my son. I’m sorry that I could never take care of you as the mother I set myself to be. Work just always got in the way and Harold will always get in the way.
I never got to teach you how to drive, I never got to teach you how to get a job. All the necessities I should’ve done with you. Now, I’ll never get the chance. That’s why I’m entrusting you with this.
Everytime I came home and looked outside the front window, you would always see outside with your bat from little league. And it got me thinking, that’s when I thought of the perfect gift for you.
This bat has the power that no other bat in the world can compare to. It can shoot out compressed air from stored up energy from physical contact. You can do so many trucks with this, like float in the air and launch yourself in the air.
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Greg flipped over to the other side.
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So many things that it’s very dangerous, so be careful about how you use it. That’s why it can never land in the hands of your father no matter what.
It’s kind of pathetic, still keeping secrets from him even during my last year of life. It’s ok, he doesn’t deserve to know this.
Sorry for the rambling, I’m running out of space.
I love you so much honey, words can’t even describe how. I missed so much time with you, but hopefully this’ll stay around forever.
Now, go and make something of yourself.
For me, and for everyone else.
Love from the bottom of my heart, Your mother.
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He dropped the note and it floated to the floor, landing perfectly upfront. He started profusely crying, constantly wiping his tears away with his hands.
“Greg!” His father was heard screaming from downstairs followed by the slamming of the front door. “GREG!”
He freaked out and started stumbling out of the basement. Holding the bat around his back. Almost tripping down the stairs, he flung the ladder back up and sealed the attic shut.
The loud stomping and thunderous footsteps of his father roared throughout the whole house as they rapidly approached. Greg closed his eyes and slowly turned his head to face his father who came storming around the corner, holding the bat in front of his head.
“You motherfucker!” He trampled over him. Grabbing the bat from out of his hands and backhanded him.
He wobbled to the ground and flat on his rear. A red handprint was marked on his right cheek.
“Why did you run!?” He started yelling at him. “Your mother is dead!”
Greg’s vision started to stretch out and get very blurry. He started breathing very heavily.
“You left her! In her final moments you ran away like a coward!” He inspected the bat that was in his hands. “What the fuck even is this?”
“Mom left that for me!” Greg got to his feet and reached out for it. He got smacked again in the face.
“You left her for this!? This is fucking useless! A bat!? What a fucking waste!”
“It’s not! She made it specifically for me!”
His father threw it behind him and down the stairs. “That is no excuse!”
“Fuck you!”
His father's eyes widened then squinted with fierce anger burning from his eyes. “What did you say to me?”
“I-I-I-Look I didn’t mean to-” His sentence was cut off when his father gripped tightly around his neck and lifted him off the ground.
“You’ll never say that to me again! NEVER!” He hurled Greg’s body down the stairs, bouncing off of every step violently. Landing on the tile floor below, his body aching in pain. The bat was right by his side, but his arms were very sore and could barely lift off the ground.
He groaned in pain as he reached out as far as his arms would let him. He was able to drag the bat into his arms as his father went storming down the stairs.
“You want to run your mouth again boy? Go right ahead! It’ll only give me more reason to beat the snot out of you!” He stood on the landing of the steps.
Greg turned over on his back and pointed the barrel of the bat at him. He frantically searched for a way to work the contraption, realizing his mother left him no instruction.
“What the fuck is that going to do?” He started walking down slowly.
He traced the knob of the bat when he felt the outline of a circular button. Not having any other choice he pressed down as hard as he could and closed his eyes. It did nothing, but he felt something inside the bat click.
“That ain’t going to do anything. Put the toy down now-”
Greg released the button and a huge burst of air blasted his father with so much force that he was sent flying through the wall and into the air outside. His limp mangled body crumpled to the street outside in front of a moving car. His corpse was ran over and tumbled around even more. A huge scream echoed throughout the whole neighborhood as the driver pulled over to the side to see the horrific sight.
Greg sat down on his back as the fear grew into his body and nestled down. He started hyperventilating and his hands shook as fierce as an earthquake. The hole in the wall draws a light cool breeze into the house.
I didn’t mean to. I didn’t mean to. I didn’t mean to.
He kept repeating in his head trying to comfort himself. He got his shaky legs up off the ground and looked down horrified at the bat.
A woman was kneeled down near his fathers masticated carcass, blood splatter was everywhere on the black concrete of the street. She was on the phone with the police eagerly and begging for ambulances to come.
Greg could only stand there and let the fear encompass him, swarming around him like he angered a beehive. He heard the booming sirens of ambulances coming around the corner.
How am I going to explain this to them? I killed my father with this bat. They're soon going to piece the puzzle together no matter what. They're going to take away my bat. No! No! I can’t let that happen. She gave it to me for a reason.
He saw the workers treating his father’s corpse and decided it was time to leave. He had no time to pack, he just started running. He sprinted and he didn’t care what direction he was heading to, as long as he was getting away from his home, far far away.
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Kyle heard the powerful banging and clanging of metal.
Found ya!
He announced in his head as he made a full sprint. Running around the corner he directly collided with something strong, which made him careen into the ground. He tumbled around until he was able to distinguish what hit him.
It was one of those creatures that he released earlier. It’s sunken in eyes glaring into his soul. It made slight little growls as it crouched down into a prancing position.
“Hey hey hey!” Kyle put his hands out as he got to his feet. “Calm down. I’m not here to hurt you.”
The creature got lower into its stance. Looking like it was about to maul him.
“I released you. I was the one that set you free?”
The creature started to act like a dog as it turned its head sideways, almost like it was confused by what he was saying.
“My name is Kyle. I’m here to help you.” He reached out his hand to the thing.
It backed up quickly and scattered around a corner.
“Wait!” He called out. “I’m being completely honest. I’m not going to hurt you.”
The creature peered its head around the corner along with its claw-like hands.
“Trust me.”
The creature started to crawl out and hunch over. The creaking of its bones as its knees bent, they seem like they were pretty frail and fragile.
“It’s ok. See?” He started petting its head like it was a pet. “I’m not harmful.”
The creature started to make gurgling noises. It was clear to him that it was trying to say something but couldn’t form the words. It was like its vocal cords were clogged up. It cleared its throat a bunch of times before being able to squeak out.
“Thank you.” It said with its low and raspy voice. “Kyle.”
“You’re welcome. But we’re not out of this yet. That guy is still alive.”
“What guy?”
“That scientist that kidnapped you and made you into that.”
They let out a slight growl and snarled, their nostrils flaring as they did. “That fucking guy.”
“Where is he!?” Another scratchy voice yelled out from around the corner, scurrying as the loud pitter patters of their claws drew more attention to them. “That fucking guy, I’ll sprawl his guts all over the fucking wall!” They came barreling around the corner. It came running up into the face of Kyle, who backed away from it. “Is it you!? Are you the guy!? I’ll fucking kill you!”
“Calm down bub, he’s with us.” The other one intervened.
“Huh!?” They were clawing away at Kyle’s shirt.
“He wants to help.”
“Impossible! There’s no way! Every human we’ve seen here has tried to inject more of that stuff into us and stuff us into those inescapable tubes.”
“But this one is telling the truth. I think.”
“You need to be certain! We can’t bet our escape on this buffoon right here. This is our one opportunity to make it outta this hell and now you want to waste it by trusting scum like him!”
“I can lead you to the man who did this to you.” Kyle interjected. “He’s fighting my friend right now and he needs my help. We can help each other out.”
“See?” The one that is sitting still looked over at the other one.
“How can we trust him? This is all a trap.”
“I’m not lying.” He continued on. “Trust me, you can even shred me up right now.” He extended his right arm out in front of the creature. “Here, try cutting my arm off.”
“Really?” The creature looked confused.
“I mean it. Try it.”
“Whatever.” It lunged its hands in the air and just like a guillotine, it came slamming down on his arm.
Kyle was forced to the ground from the impact, his arm jolting downwards and compulse to the floor first. “Wow, you’re really strong.” He complimented.
“How the!?” They were left in shock with their mouth agape. “No way. I put all of my back into that.”
“How were you able to survive that?” The other one asked.
“Because I was experimented on like the rest of you.” He said as he got up. “Not like I was disfigured like you, but that doesn’t matter. I hate people who take advantage of others. That’s why I want to take him down.”
The other two looked bewildered as they were filled to the brim with courage, ready to face anything that heads their way.
“Alright!” One of them shouted. They did an ear splitting screech and what came back was the same noise but very distant and echoey. A huge sound of claws tattering came from every direction around them. A huge swarm of the creatures appear around every corner and encircle Kyle. There seem to be like a hundred of them at the very least.
“Woah, I thought most of you got knocked out by the gas.” Kyle said.
“Nope. That gas had no effect on us whatsoever.” The creature said.
“Then what was the point of it?”
“Beats me.”
“Whatever.” He shook his head. “So, are you all in?”
“Yeah!” Many of them shouted out in a chant.
“Then let’s do this.” Kyle looked around and he heard a very thunderous swooshing sound coming from a very close by room. “Over there!” He led the charge as the huge wave of creatures followed his command.
We’re coming to get you Greg! Don’t you worry, we’ll deal with this piece of shit.
ns 15.158.61.23da2
