Success?

Bright light and an aching head were what woke me up. The pain that surged throughout my body was long gone but the grogginess I felt was there. And honestly, it took me a while to reorganise my memories. 

I killed my grandfather and was sent back into the past… Again. But this time a slightly altered version of it. 

Is this the infamous Grandfather Paradox? 

Whatever it is, I was then made into a lab rat to gain freedom. And since I am awake… That means the experiment was a success? I am free? Maybe?

"*Argh*"

"So, you are finally awake." 

Grabbing my head because of the pain, I looked towards the speaker. It was none other than the spooky Nosferatu. 

Ghastly white skin with obsidian black hair. 

"The experiment was a success and as promised, you are free." He said calmly, despite the fact that he was betraying the Führer. 

Immediately, I went on to check my physical features… and thankfully, there were no visible changes. 

But as I looked to my side, a frown formed on my face. 

"Where is… Max?" 

The boy was there with me from the moment I was here. And as much as I didn't care about others, it is concerning to not find him there. 

"I fulfilled my part of the promise and let him go. He went to his lover." He answered, making me remember their previous discussion. "But before leaving he promised to find you." 

I was only wondering about his location but since he is alive. That's all that matters. 

"Since the experiment is a success." He continued. "You may leave. But how you survive the Nazi will depend on your capability."

This didn't sit well with me. If we were precious experiments, then why was he letting us go? And why at a time when the Nazis were going to be after us. 

It didn't make sense. 

"You spent all those resources to let us go alone and die?" I asked. "Isn't that a waste?"

The Nosferatu raised an eyebrow. "You two are rare but not the only ones with an X-gene. You two were just test subjects that I needed to taste my new formula and theory… And as expected it was a success." He answered. 

That does make sense… But no one would let their first creations be destroyed so easily. 

"As for your survival… You two have the capability to survive on your own. The abilities you received are greater than I expected and considering that… you two can easily survive the Nazi." He said. "As long as you don't walk into a barrage of bullets or bombs that is."

Interesting.

But…

"What is my power?" 

The most important question and one that I want answered.

The man didn't say anything, instead he walked towards one of the glass containers —one with reptiles inside of it.

"You can call me Essex. As for your power…" He opened the container, letting a small reptilian creature crawl out of it. "Try to tap into it like you did for the first time. And you will figure out exactly what it does."

When did I— oh!

"I can try." I said, making him nod. 

Now the first time I felt like I was doing something physically… was when I tried controlling my pheromones. 

So—

I took a deep breath and tried to look at my biology. I could see and feel every little action occurring inside of me. 

However, there was only one process that I had control over. And that was pheromone secretion. 

Bypassing every biological process, I went straight towards the pheromone formation and secretion. Even now I couldn't control all of it but I had the ability to manipulate at least a fraction. Keeping that in mind, I tried to pull them towards me. 

And fortunately, it worked.

I could feel the pheromones moving according to my will and taking advantage of it, I expelled them out of my body while directing them towards the reptile. 

"Impressive." Essex said. "Being able to direct the pheromones on the first try is not an easy task."

My pheromones went towards the reptile, engulfing it in a haze and within a second, it went into a trance. 

"What just happened?" I asked, confused as to why the reptile froze. 

"Try ordering it." Essex said with an amused smile. 

Following the instructions, I decided to order the little creature. 

"Turn around."

A simple command, but one that no reptile can follow. However—

This one did. 

"W-what!"

The lizard-like creature turned around on my command, leaving me shellshocked. 

Essex didn't say anything, instead he stood smiling in a corner. 

Another try.

"Crawl forward and turn left."

Without a moment of hesitation, the lizard crawled forward and turned left. 

It was not a coincidence, the lizard was under my control. 

That means…

"Your ability is pheromone manipulation. And what it does… you have already seen it." He leaned into his chair. "Little Max also gained an impressive ability. But to know what it is, you will have to meet him."

I don't want to meet him. At least not now. 

However…

"What is the limit of this ability? And are there any side effects?" 

My question made the scientist chuckle. 

"There are no visible side effects yet. As for the limit, I would say you can control most humans. As long as their will is not made of iron." He scratched his chin. "You cannot control people with X-gene."

Being able to command most humans was great enough as being greedy can get me killed. 

"However… while you were sleeping, I realised that your pheromones were growing stronger." He said, making me raise an eyebrow.

"And what does that mean?" 

He folded his arms. "That means with time and training, you will be able to control people even if they have the X-gene." 

That's neat. But I am not taking chances just yet. Trying to control X-gene bearers will be suicidal.

"Most people unlock the X-gene naturally however in some it lays dormant forever. And you should be able to control the dormant ones even now." He said. 

"So, does that mean it can work on you?" I asked, fully aware of the answer. 

He laughed. "No. You cannot expect me to grant you an ability without me having ways to block or stay safe from it."

I already know that he is either an X-gene bearer or someone with a similar thing. 

"Now, little Adam Galler. If you don't want to be part of another experiment or gunned down… you should make an escape." He said with a calm albeit scary smile. 

I stared at him for a while. 

"I do not know whether to thank you or be wary of you."

He chuckled. "Both." 

*Knock* *Knock*

Pointing at a small window to the right, he sighed. "Now run, little one. The rest is up to you."

"Mr. Essex, the Lord Führer has returned."