Infidel: Prequel

“Doctor, subject 35 is prepped for the procedure. We await your instruction.” The apprentice shuddered as the doctor turned from his monitors to look at him. There was no sympathy for the subject in his eyes. Only a cold and unfeeling curiosity as he spoke. “Is he awake?”

“No sir, there’s at least an hour before the anaesthetic wears off.” The doctor turned back to his monitor. “Then he is not prepped, we wait until he wakes.” The apprentice hesitated. All eyes in the room turned to him. “But sir, the infusion could already kill him as it is, why take any more risks?” The doctor continued to stare unblinkingly at the vitals on his monitor. “We will not deviate from the experiment parameters. We have a duty to fully explore the effects of K-27 on the human body, conscious as well as unconscious.”

The apprentice turned his head to look out of the observation window, the subject had been dragged in from solitary unit 236 a half-hour ago and strapped to the infusion apparatus as per instructions. This was common procedure and almost every day a new subject was brought into the labs, but none yet had survived. The apprentice knew that the doctor was becoming more and more desperate with each failure. A few of the other prison labs had already produced at least one prototype as a result of their experiments with K-27, and the doctor was becoming increasingly determined to create one of his own. Even if his demeanour never changed, his methods had become far more radical. The apprentice was afraid that if the doctor did not succeed soon he might take extreme measures.

As time passed the apprentice read the subject’s file. He had been arrested for vagrancy in the fourth city and was immediately sent to continental prison Gamma without trial and with no chance of bail. What would be the point? He has no relatives, immediate or distant. This brought him to the Doctor’s attention. He was soon reassigned for “community service” in the prison’s R&D wing. His physique is moderately above average, typical of a vagrant of his age. Only the strongest vagrants evade capture long enough to survive past the maximum age of euthanasia. The doctor considers this one of society’s best examples of Darwinism.

As the hour passed the doctor never moved, his eyes darting from side to side as he viewed the monitor the only indication that he was alive at all. The apprentice was confident in his measurements and sure enough as the clock struck the hour the subject began to stir. “Sir, he’s awake.” The doctor rose from his chair and walked slowly to the observation window. “Begin infusion of the catalyst.” At this the entire room came alive with the sounds of the science team at their work.

The subject had opened his eyes and despite his grogginess the panic in his eyes was all too apparent. He had been hooked up to a series of tubes and was strapped tightly to the experimentation table. The apprentice approached the control console with some apprehension and initiated the process. A clear fluid began to flow through the tubes and into the subject, he began struggling against his restraints and tried to scream, but the tubes in his throat stifled anything he might have been trying to say.

Before long the subject’s struggling ceased and he fell limp on the table. “Sir, he’s flat lining.” When the doctor spoke there was the slightest quiver of anticipation. “Excellent, begin the infusion of K-27.” The apprentice took a deep breath before he flipped the final switch. The fluid in the tube stopped flowing, but what replaced it was not a fluid. It moved more like lightning, but lightning that had been slowed down. It was glowing with an intensity that was not so much blinding as it was enthralling. It was also as black as a moonless midnight.

As the strange substance reached the subject he began to convulse. His flesh appeared to be crawling with insects but his eyes were still closed. As he threw a glance at the doctor the apprentice realised that he had begun to sweat, he had never before seen the doctor perspire. The apprentice had seen many experiments just like this one, but what was so unique about this case that was making the doctor so... excitable? He looked back at his control panel and realised that the subject’s heart was beating again.

The convulsions had not ceased but his skin was no longer crawling. Instead it seemed to be tightening, almost shrinking over his muscles. The dark glow was now seeping from his mouth and began enveloping his entire form. It was at this point that the subject opened his eyes, and all hell broke loose. There was no longer any fear in his eyes, in fact, there was very little left in his eyes that could be considered human. Suddenly the laboratory began to shudder and warning sirens echoed throughout the complex. The doctor noticed none of this, he had pressed his face to the glass of the observation window. “I’ve done it! Michael I’VE DONE IT!”



The apprentice did not share in the doctor’s enthusiasm, he was no longer present. He had fled along with the rest of the science team. The entire prison complex had initiated evacuation procedures and all vital personnel were making a run for the emergency escape terminals. The doctor noticed none of this, he was far too enthralled with the scene that was unravelling before his eyes. God was being born, and he was the father. It was at this moment that the facility exploded.

When the dust had cleared and the rubble had settled almost half of prison Gamma had been reduced to a pile of debris and ash. There were no signs of movement for hours afterwards until a solitary figure rose from the wreckage. He searched the rubble until he found a tattered lab coat. He slipped it on and subject 35 disappeared into the wastelands.