A Changed Man (Altered Book 1) Read online

  Tess opened the door and walked into the lab. There were tables everywhere. There were all kinds of beakers and tubes filled with liquids, microscopes, and Petri dishes she assumed were full of cultured cells, like bacteria. She walked passed the tables that were lined with stools, three to each table. Tess noticed to the side of one of the long tables that there was a stand; it held a large glass cylinder with an oxygen tube attached the top. As she got closer she realized it was the same opal colored stringy thing she saw one of the doctors implanting into the brain of a patient when she was on level two. It was just floating there in some kind of clear gel like liquid; it reminded her of runny pudding.

  Tess moved closer to get a better look. It was really quite beautiful. She could see blue, purple, and yellow as if looking at an actual opal. When it shifted the colors would dance across the surface of it. The only thing she could compare it to was an octopus or a squid. Its long, stringy tentacles had no suction cups, but were smooth. The entire thing from top to bottom couldn't have been more than three inches long. There was no top or bottom; no head that she could see. She had no idea what it was but she was sure now that this is what they were using to alter the prisoners. It either gave them some special power or it killed them.

  Tess continued her way through the large lab when she spotted a door with a small glass window at the back of the room. When she reached the door she put her face up to the glass. The room was empty of people. She could see huge cylinders suspended from the high ceiling. They had to be at least ten feet in length and were three to four feet from touching the floor. There were large black coverings draped over them. All Tess could see was a light blue glow coming from the tops of the cylinders that casted eerie shadows on the ceiling. She tried the doorknob. Locked. Again she pulled the keycard from her pocket and inserted it in to the slot, the light stayed red. She pulled it out and tried again. Still red. Tess realized there must be some serious shit in here and she really wanted to see what it was, but without a key to get in she wasn't sure what to do next. Tess backtracked through the lab. She was going to go over every table and through every desk in hopes of finding a key that would get her into that room.

  Rick was sitting on the floor with his back leaning against the wall listening to the soft snores coming from Dillon. Her face was still a mess, but at least the eye that was almost swollen closed before looked better. Satisfied she was out of the woods and on the mend, he leaned his head back and closed his eyes. This day had been hell and he was exhausted. He was just drifting off when he heard noises coming from outside his room.

  A horrible screeching sound boomed through the small room. Dillon shot up in the bed then cried out in pain. Rick ran over to her.

  "What the hell was that?" Dillon asked. Just then the noise started again.

  "I don't know!" Rick yelled over the loud groaning so Dillon could hear him. He stood in front of the bed waiting to take on whatever was about to come through that door. He wasn't about to let anything near Dillon; he would protect her with his life. Putting himself between her and the door and in a fighting stance, his heart was racing and all the training he had learned over the years came flooding back to him.

  The noise stopped. It was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Just then the wood door swung open and there stood two men.

  "Rick!" Remington yelled.

  "Remington?" Rick couldn't believe his eyes.

  "Holy shit man, it's good to see you!" Remington ran toward Rick and embraced him with a big bear hug.

  "Jesus Christ Rem! How'd you find me?" Rick asked surprised.

  Remington moved to the side and pointed at Jordan. "He found you. This is Jordan. Jordan, Rick." Rick and Jordan nodded at each other. "Now enough with the formalities we need to get the fuck out of here. Every guard left in this place is probably on their way here."

  "This is Dillon. She's coming with us." Rick moved so the men could see Dillon still sitting up in the bed. She was sweating and pale, her chest rising and falling fast.

  "Grab her then." Remington said. "We need to go now."

  Rick reached under Dillon’s bed and pulled out a pair of sweat pants and quickly helped her into them. He picked her up and cradled her in his arms. "Lets go."

  As the three men were exiting the room Rick noticed the cell door completely folded in on itself. "What the hell happened here?"

  Jordan smiled and pointed at Remington. "He happened."

  "I'll tell you all about it when we get out of here." Remington said. The three headed down the corridor when the alarm started going off again.

  "Well that took longer than I thought it would." Jordan said. They continued down the hall when two guards came around the corner and were headed straight for them.

  "No need to be quiet anymore." Jordan said to Remington, and with that, Remington pulled the shotgun from his back and fired, dropping the two guards.

  Remington knew that there would be more coming this way. This was their way out. "Lets keep going." He said.

  The three of them picked up the pace, Rick keeping up quite well to be carrying another person. Dillon was almost slack in his arms. She was trying her best to keep her head up and hold on to Rick, but was still so weak from what happened earlier.

  "Jordan," Remington said. "You go up ahead and check our exit. See how many more of them there are."

  "You sure you want me to leave you?" Jordan asked. "Rick's got his hands full and all you have is a shotgun."

  "I've reloaded, we'll be fine." Remington said sternly. "Now go!"

  "I'll be back as fast as I can." Jordan said just before fading into a black shadow.

  "Holy fuck what is that?" Rick said staring at Jordan. He wasn't sure if he believed what he just witnessed. He just watched a man disintegrate into a black mass of, well, he had no idea what it was.

  Remington turned to face Rick. His friends face was white as a sheet. He looked to the girl in Ricks arms, her eyes open wide and unfocused like she was in a trance.

  "It's okay." Remington said. "It's still Jordan, just, well it's hard to explain. C'mon, I'll tell you all about it if and when we get out of here.”

  Rick adjusted Dillon in his arms, tightening his hold on her and followed Remington further down the corridor. More guards appeared in front of them. Remington emptied the shotgun, reloaded, and emptied it again. They were coming in waves now. Two then a few seconds later, two more. They just kept coming like that. Remington loaded his last two shells into the rifle and fired at the guards. He hit one but the other had jumped behind his comrade, escaping the burning rain of metal.

  Remington saw the man lift his gun about to fire. He focused on the weapon and just before the guard pulled the trigger the barrel of the gun twisted upward toward the ceiling with a whining crack. The guard not realizing what was happening had pulled the trigger then screamed in pain as the gun exploded in his hand.

  Remington watched as the man writhed on the floor holding his mangled hand and crying. Remington walked over to him and got down on one knee. "I'm leaving you alive for one reason. You tell your boss, Mr. Fucking Smith that this isn't over. I'll be back for the rest of them."

  The guard looked up at Remington with tears in his eyes and just nodded. Remington stood up and settled the now useless shotgun back into its cradle that hung from his back and walked toward Rick. "Let's go."

  Remington and Rick made their way down the hallway when their vision became blocked by blackness. "Is that him?" Rick asked.

  "That’s him." Remington reassured him, while still moving toward the darkness.

  "Jesus, it's like looking into a black hole." Rick said trying to keep up; Dillon was starting to get heavy.

  They all watched as Jordan shifted from the dark cloud back into a young man. "I made it to the exit." Jordan said. "There's two standing guard at the door but there are more around. I could hear them over their radios. They sound panicked so maybe that’s to our advantage.”

  "How many between us and the ex
it?" Remington asked.

  "None." Jordan answered. "Which now that you mention it seems strange."

  "They’re going to try and flank us." Remington said. “These corridors run parallel to each other but they all meet at the mouth just before the foyer where the guards front desk is. We don't know where these halls connect further down the way we came in for Rick. So we need to watch our backs."

  "I'll take point." Jordan said.

  "You don't have to do that kid." Remington didn't want to be the reason Jordan got hurt. He's been through enough already.

  "You're out of ammo." Jordan stated matter of factly. "And he's got his hands full." He said pointing at Rick. "I'll change and just plow through them like earlier. It's disgusting and exhausting but right now I'm all you got."

  "Okay, but don't wear yourself out and be careful. I'm still not convinced you're invincible." Remington said.

  Jordan just smiled. They started down the hall again, staying very quiet and listening for any sign of being tracked. Jordan was in the lead with Remington close behind him. Rick carrying Dillon was bringing up the rear.

  All of a sudden there was a loud pop. Remington heard the shot and then a grunt behind him and turned just in time to see Rick fall to his knees, then onto his stomach, dropping Dillon in front of him. Jordan changed to black and charged the shooter going right through him and taking the man’s insides with him as he exited the other side.

  "Rick!" Remington yelled running toward his friend. He kneeled onto the ground in front of Rick rolling him onto his back. He could see his left knee was pretty much gone.

  "Take her." Rick said.

  "You can make it! Get up, I'll help you!" Remington said.

  "I can't walk, it took out my knee. You can't carry us both. You have to take her, I promised her."

  "Jordan can carry you." Remington said.

  Ricks complexion was paling; he was losing blood fast. "You can't both have your hands full." Rick said. "You need Jordan to take out the guards. He can't do that if he's carrying me."

  Remington knew he was right. He stood and took off his belt; he wrapped it around Rick’s thigh and tightened it as much as he could to stop the heavy blood flow. "Jesus, I won't leave you." He said.

  Jordan returned in human form. "We gotta go. There are a lot more coming."

  "Please." Rick said. "You have to take her. Get her out of here. I promised her I would keep her safe, don't make me look like a guy that doesn't keep his promises." He said with a small smile.

  Remington's heart was breaking. He didn't know if he could leave this man who was the only brother he had ever known. At the same time, he didn't want to let his friend down by not abiding his wishes. It was a decision he didn't want to make but he knew he had to do what Rick asked of him. If the situation was reversed and it was him lying there, he knew Rick would do whatever Remington asked.

  Remington leaned down and scooped a crying Dillon up into his arms. "I'll be back for you brother."

  "I have no doubt." Rick said, close to passing out. His leg where his kneecap used to be was now a mangled mess. He hid his pain well. They were taught to hide it, but Remington knew it had to be excruciating.

  "Remington!" Jordan shouted. "We have to go now, or we're not getting out of here."

  Remington could hear the footfalls of more guards running toward their direction. He looked down at his friend once more; he was unconscious. He tightened his hold on Dillon and followed Jordan down the corridor.

  Tess had looked everywhere for a key that would open the one room she couldn’t get into. She knew she had been down here a while and was hoping that Freddy was just so shit faced he wouldn’t notice. She knew it was time to head back up. Maybe she could swipe a key tomorrow off a lab tech or something. They were pretty geeky; surely she could flirt with one of the men and distract them enough to borrow a key. She was on her way out of the lab when she stopped to gaze at the opal colored creature one more time. "What in the hell are you?" She whispered to it. Not getting a response she decided to leave it for another time.

  Tess left the lab, making sure the door locked behind her and quickly made her way back to the elevator. She picked up the fire extinguisher she had left on the floor to hold the doors open and set it back in its cradle on the wall. She stepped in and pushed the button for the first floor.

  Remington and Jordan made their way toward the mouth where the corridors met. Their exit was just beyond it. Remington knew that this could be where they met the most resistance. "Hey kid." Remington said to Jordan. "We're almost out of here, don't get slack. Full alert, got it?"

  "Yes sir." Jordan answered. They reached the end of their corridor. "I can see the guards at the door." Jordan whispered.

  Remington turned around. He didn't see anyone behind them but he knew there were guards still back there. They just hadn't caught up yet. He followed Jordan toward the large open room that was the belly of the labyrinth.

  The guards blocking their escape caught sight of them. Raising their weapons at the same time, they fired. Jordan tore through one of them, changing just before the bullet went through him. The other bullet aimed at Remington and Dillon had stopped in mid-air right in front of Dillon’s out stretched hand and just dropped to the floor with a small clink.

  Dillon let her arm fall and looked up at Remington. Her face was still pale and she had a damp sheen covering her forehead. Remington watched as her eyes rolled back in her head and she passed out cold.

  Jordan took care of the guard that fired at Remington and pushed the door to their freedom open. The cold night air rushed through the doorway wicking the sweat form their brows instantly. "Can you find your way back?" Jordan asked as they crossed the threshold.

  "I think so, yeah. Wait, you're going to stay? After all that you still want to explore?" Remington asked surprised.

  “I'm the only one who can get in and out of this place undetected. Once they come through that room and see this door open they’re going to know we've escaped. They would never for a minute think that one of us has stayed behind. Now is the best chance for me to find out what’s really going on in here. They’re going to be tired. They’re going to let their guard down and everyone that has seen me has died, so I haven’t been compromised. Plus, I can keep an eye on Rick. Maybe get him some help somehow."

  Remington didn't like this plan one bit, but unfortunately he had already agreed to it before they had even left Jackie's house tonight. "Okay, but be careful. Do what you can for Rick and I'll be in your debt."

  "They’re coming. I'll hold them off and take out as many as I can. Now get out of here." Jordan said turning around.

  Remington watched as Jordan faded to darkness. He looked down at the delicate girl he had in his arms. "I'll take care of her Rick." He whispered, and ran off into the night toward the forest.

  Tess thought she had somehow entered a war zone upon the elevator doors opening. She stepped out into the room and there were bodies laying everywhere. Some had their insides on the outside beside them on the bloody floor. It was the most gruesome thing she had ever seen. She turned in a slow circle surveying the destruction when she noticed a black mass just floating there in front of her. It was like a dark cloud but that couldn't be, this was inside. It started moving toward her and she took a step back, slipping in the blood and gore on the floor and falling flat on her back.

  Jordan couldn't help but laugh. Anyone who worked in this place deserved to die. Watching this woman squirm in guts was just the perfect beginning to the end she was about to meet. He changed into his human form in front of her; about to put her out of her misery when he noticed the doctor badge she had clipped to her shirt.

  "Get up!" He shouted at her. Tess was horrified at what she just saw. As if sitting in someone’s bodily fluids wasn't enough, she just saw this man emerge from a blob of nothingness.

  "You're a doctor?" Jordan asked. Tess was still trying to stand up, too shocked to speak. Her legs wobbled as she tried to g
et her balance on the slippery floor.

  "Hey lady! Are. You. A. Doctor?" He said to her like he was talking to someone who just had a lobotomy.

  Tess was finally able to stand up straight. She raised her gaze to meet his. He was young, couldn't be more than twenty-three, twenty-four years old.

  "Yes, yes, I'm a doctor." She answered her voice shaking.

  "Well that just saved your life." Jordan said to her. "Come with me."

  Jordan started walking down the hall toward the place he last saw Rick. He didn't hear her following him. He stopped and turned around. She was just standing there, in shock he supposed. Just staring at the dead guards all over the floor.

  "Hey Doctor!" Jordan shouted. "I said, follow me!"

  Tess jerked her head up toward Jordan. "Where are we going?" she asked.

  "You're going to earn the reason I let you live. You're going to save my friend." He said.

  Tess nodded her head and began walking toward Jordan. "Where is everyone?" She asked.

  "Well as you can see, half of them are dead. The other half are probably on their way here right now. Jordan led her down the corridor until he spotted Rick lying in the floor unconscious.

  "Rick!" Tess shouted and ran over to him dropping to her knees.

  "You know him?" Jordan asked.

  "Yes, he's a patient of mine." She answered.

  "Give me your wallet." He demanded.

  "My wallet?" She asked stunned. "Why do you want my wallet?" Tess reached into her lab coat and pulled out the small wallet she carried with her I.D., a credit card, and a few dollars for the vending machines. "You going to rob me?"