- Repercussions

"Hahaha! Son, I have to say, I wasn't expecting you to come forth that soon!"

He's laughing. As though he was in a position to do so, or that I wasn't being serious. But I'm totally serious.

"Join the Foundation you say? If you are truly ready to commit to this affirmation, and to what ensues, it goes without saying that I'm in no position to be refusing your help."

"Doc, before this whole thing goes any further, you need to answer these questions. My commitment will all depend on what your responses are."

His damn smirk finally vanished. 

"I understand. Go right ahead, young man."

"What happened to those Soldiers? Be aware that I'll be considering any deaths to be your doing. In other words, in my eyes, you will be nothing less than a murderer."

"I see. I'm assuming that nothing I could say would change your opinion on that. Nor do I believe that I need to justify my actions to the likes of you. Hmm. From our reports, a majority of them died from the injections. Only a few survived."

"I see. Then, here's my other question. How special am I?"

"Hmm, it's really hard to tell. I would need to proceed through a bunch of experimentations just to be able to see what you are capable of. But, the good news is, we already have prepared such means. Those tests aren't there just for you, this is part of the Foundation's usual course. When the time comes, I will have you called and brought where you need to be. But for now, I can't answer this question."

"I understand."

"So? Are you still going about becoming a Soldier, son?"

"Yes. Your answers haven't changed my mind."

"Good. Then, I will send you someone to show you the Foundation quarter. That is all."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I've been following Doc's man for quite a bit. He showed me the parts in the Lab related to the Foundation. It starts with the Coliseum. On the other side of the door at the back, this is where the Foundation really is. There's a bunch of dorms. Each room has a couple of bunk beds. The man informed me that every room was filled, and there was no place for me. But Doc said many of those Soldiers died, isn't that supposed to mean a few beds are free now? Were the dorms already full and people had to sleep somewhere else? He also told me that I'll have to leave my current room since it's for patients in need of medical treatment only. So, I'll have to find a place to stay.

Other than the dorms, there are quite a few interesting places. I saw a glimpse of what looked like Training Grounds. They have all sorts of equipment and installations, many of them unknown to me. Also, there was some sort of Bar, with a dining room. All those places are practically empty. There are a couple of people here and there, but nothing crazy. I wonder if there are more Soldiers? Maybe they're outside, doing missions? We stopped in front of that bar.

"I showed you everything you needed to know. I'm done here, I believe you can do whatever you want."

He turned around and started to walk away. What should I do now? Maybe find a place to stay? Where? The only possibilities I had were out of the question. Maybe I could just see what this bar is about, maybe I could go talk to someone here. I'm entering the place. It stinks with alcohol. Nothing surprising. I'll approach the bartender to grab a drink. I don't want any but I guess I should act normal if I'm planning to subtract information from him. I walked through the rows of tables to go to the counter at the far back. I took place on a stool.

"Hey, hmm, can I get a drink?"

"..."

The man was staring at me. The obvious scar on his face was the only thing I was able to look at. Other than that trait, nothing stands out: bald, short black beard, well-worn clothes, pretty bland look. Well, it's more that I'm not expecting any specific dress code at this point.

"What do you want?"

"Just a beer is fine."

He turned around, put a stained glass under a lever and pulled it. The alcoholic liquid was rapidly filling the glass. He turned back to look at me and put the glass on the counter. He then did a sign with his hand, asking me to give him something. I was confused. He then sighed, leaning on the counter to be able to reach me. He grabbed the far left of my collar and started to pull me over his side. I accidentally, well instinctively, let go of his grapple with a sharp movement. He quickly used his other hand to grab the drink and slide it out of my range.

"You filthy thief, you can just go fuck yourself! I don't have time to serve assholes like you. Now get out of my bar and come back when you have something to pay me!"

"I didn't mean to steal anything! You're the one who attacked me."

I looked at my collar as I was saying so. And then it hit me. The badge, I saw my badge attached to me on the left side. Was he trying to take it?

"My… Badge? Am I supposed to..."

He probably caught up pretty quickly that I wasn't putting on an act. He looked me in the eyes, raised his eyebrows and then he closed his eyes. He scratched his exposed head.

"Huurgh.. what's wrong with that kid… Yes, of course, you need to give me the badge to pay for the drink, what are you even saying?"

He did the same hand movement as before. He was a bit more irritated and impatient this time. I then decided to give him my badge. I snatched it off my uniform and put it in his palm. He grabbed it, used his other hand to reach his back pocket and pulled out a strange tool. He passed it over my badge in a very smooth and efficient movement, showing just how much practice he's had, doing this very same movement. The engine beeped. He looked at it and handed me back my badge. He put the weird equipment back in his pocket, then grabbed the glass and slid it back in front of me.

"There you go, you weir-"

"How does it work?"

"Huh?"

He faintly arched his back away from me, my oppressive eyes on him and my odd question caught him off guard. Honestly, it caught me off guard too. My curiosity was at it again. I have this controlling feeling inside me that keeps forcing me into wanting to know more.

"Wha- How does it wo.. What do you mean kiddo?"

"What is in my badge that allows me to pay you?"

"Well... That's.. You know... When you complete missions and defeat Hollows and stuff, you just can."

"But I didn't fight any yet."

"The fuck would I know."

"So, if I defeat those monsters, I can pay for a drink? Then… What about those who are not strong enough to defeat Hollows? What about those who don't have a badge?"

"What? There's nobody like this around, my guy!"

Hmmm… I guess that means only Soldiers are coming here since they're the only people walking around with badges. Then those people with the suits and jewels, they probably have their own bars and stuff where they are, behind that locked door. If I remember correctly, they were wearing bracelets. But, why do I have both? I got a badge and a bracelet. I already have a very small idea of what the badge does, but not the bracelet. Then maybe I can ask him about this.

"Hey, then what about this?"

I put my arm on the counter so my wrist could be in his vision field. As soon as he saw the bracelet, he was horrified. But his expression quickly flipped to an insane one. He took the glass of beer he served me and smashed it on the counter, spilling and splashing alcohol everywhere. I looked at him confused, but he was already a few steps ahead of me.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A right hook was already coming at the clueless young man, setting its course to land on his chin. His knuckles smashed against his jaw; a loud noise was made out of this collision. It was then followed by a scream of pain. It wasn't the young man's. The bartender's hand was utterly obliterated. Pieces of broken bones found their way to pierce through his skin. He then totally snapped. His eyes sank into madness.

He screeched as he threw his body on the boy's arm, squeezing it between him and the counter. He lifted his stomach just enough to reveal part of the forearm. As he was shrieking a deranged scream, he started to ferociously attack my arm with the piece of broken glass. With his improvised weapon, he was throwing determined slicing swings on the limb, trying to cut it. 

The transparent dagger was drastically reduced in size at each strike, as the glass was being destroyed. The bartender didn't even flinch. He was still going. He was probably already long gone and didn't even notice the ineffectiveness of his attack. Unannounced, the newly promoted soldier was thrown off his seat. A strong hand pulled him by the back of his uniform and broke him loose from the madman. The men that were sitting at one of the tables quickly caught on to the assault that was happening at the counter and went to end it.

"Oi! Oi! Booze! What the fuck is wrong with you!? What has got into you for fucks sake!"

A man leaned down over the young man and helped him get back on his feet.

"Hey kid, you good? It's crazy, it looks like you're unscathed! You better get out of here! I don't know what's wrong with Booze, he never did something like that before!"

"DON'T LET HIM OUT!!!! GET HIS BRACELET!!! HE HAS A BRACELET!!!!"

The men weren't holding the bartender in place anymore. They were just standing there, looking at the young amnesiac. They changed. They're not the same. He could sense some sort of aura coming out of them. It was as though he could see it. He was able to see a thick shroud surrounding them. The fact that he was somehow able to envision something like that wasn't the problem. This energy, those aura. They had murderous intent. He could feel it. Experiencing it.

But he was safe yet again. His body once again took over, taking control of his thoughts, acting by its own judgement. Every time his life is threatened, it happens. That's why nothing happened back at the counter. Or when he tried to kill himself. He wasn't at risk. His body knew it, it could tell he couldn't get hurt. But now. Now it knows. It's a whole different story. His body forced his head to look ahead to start rushing out. He didn't even take a step. He hadn't even moved yet when one of those Soldiers was already standing in front of the entrance. His exit.

He was slowly closing the door in front of him; he could hear the door creasing on its way. He could hear the steps of the other Soldiers approaching him from behind. He could hear his heavy breathing. All the noises were in sync. Steps forward. Breath in. Creasing. Steps forward. Breath out. Creasing. As he breathed in and the ones in the back took a step, the door closed at last. As soon as the lock was heard by all of them, it started.

The man at the door teleported in his face. He blitzed him that fast. His right knee was cranked up to his chest, his arms crossing each other above his head. The victim's arms were automatically slowly lifting in front of him, preparing to protect him. He was merely watching the show. He didn't need to do anything, his body was alright on its own. Better on its own.

The grown Soldier was unfolding his leg, accumulating a monstrous amount of strength and speed. His kick landed on his sternum before his arms could complete the shield. He completely lost his breath for an instant. He was then violently propelled back. He flew through the air before being abruptly stopped by a wall of muscles. The Soldiers behind him closed the gap between themselves to break his course. They grappled grappled and held him in a standing position.

The young man was currently looking at the ground. His head decided to quickly look up in front of him to let his eyes inform his brain of the current situation. The Soldier was gone. He was nowhere to be seen. His eyes were unable to spot him, but his ears yes. They were able to catch the faint noise of clothing waving in the air. His vision immediately angled above him, only to discover a second inevitable incoming blow. The man was falling from an insanely high jump, his knee was making contact with his cheek. His leg was stretched to its maximum, his feet flexing towards his head.

Knowing the attack was impossible to block, the only option his body had was to take as little damage as possible. Trusting its defence, his brain ordered his head to look down, presenting the back of his skull. The reason was simple. His body wanted to avoid a direct hit on any of my organs positioned on his face, erasing the risk of losing any of its senses.

At the same time, his vision landed on his feet and the attack connected. The boot's heel smashed into the back of the young man's skull, forcing his neck to bend over its natural capacity. His vision became extremely blurry. A spurt of blood escaped through my nose, pointing at his shoes, and dropping blood on them. He could feel the pumping of his heart at the back of his brain.

As soon as the Soldier landed on the floor and his boots entered his eyesight, the recruit felt hands clinging to his hair, firmly holding his head in place. Before he could even blink, he was able to see, through the foggy screen in his eyes, knee approaching his nose with an unbelievable velocity. The ball joint embraced his face with a predatory strike. A dry and low clatter resonated in the bar, causing vibration in the empty glasses. His nose and his cheekbones definitely sank in a bit. He felt it.

The brutal shock also created a powerful circular shockwave strong enough to send the chairs and table flying. He was completely overwhelmed. The others holding him down didn't do much. Just the other alone would have been enough to deal with him. He wanted to think about why all this was happening to him right now, but he didn't have time. His assailant in front of him whistled. It was immediately followed by his comrades kicking him in the back of his knees, forcing him to kneel before his enemy. The young man's head had been facing down almost this whole fight. A fight, more like a one-sided crushing.

One of the men behind him grabbed the recruit's bangs by the root and bent his head back, obliging me to look up. He had to slightly close his eyes because of the aggressive lights burning his now sensitive irises. His vision wasn't blurry anymore, but it was limited by the fact that his eyes were practically almost fully closed. However, he could still perceive his threat.

The attacker crouched to grab a chair that had been propelled earlier. The man then turned back to face the youngster. He cracked the wooden furniture back, before swinging it right back towards him. From the momentum accumulated with his full body rotation, this chair was now packing more strength and damage than a sledgehammer; as though a blacksmith was about to smash an already broken egg. The impact was both barbaric and precise. The contact between the wood and his temple created a second shock wave. A circle of dust was formed by the pressure of the air being released. The furniture imploded in pieces. My hair slipped through the other Soldier's hand, and my skull was launched, crashing on the floor.

The force behind the blow was enough to make it bounce back. A disturbing and concerning noise was produced by the clash between his unbelievably durable skull and the thick concrete. That was the last thing he could hear. After that, it was completely quiet. The winner of the bout leaned down above his prey. He was saying something; he could see his lips moving. He looked at his friends and waved. Sadly, the defeated recruit couldn't keep his eyes open. He just wanted to sleep right now. He needed to.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In a dark and empty room, four men are kneeling in a pond of blood, their blood. Their hands and legs are tied. Doc is standing in front of them, hands behind his back. James and Adam are standing behind them, wiping off blood on their baseball bats with handkerchiefs.

"I don't like to do those things. I really don't. But I'm obliged to now. You see, you took a toy of mine to play with it without my permission. Not only that, you broke it. Well, nothing beyond reparation. You see, the toy you played with is quite tough. But more importantly, quite special. Now, may I ask the reasoning behind all of this? Not that your answers would change your faith whatsoever. You can say what you want. I don't have a say in your last words."

The captive men looked at each other, making eye contact to be able to get a clue from one another. Booze, the bartender, spat blood on the ground and wiped his mouth by swiping it on his right shoulder. He then lifted his head to look at Doc directly in the face.

"Last words hun? Gotta be sure to make them worth it then. Fck you! I got nothing to tell you, you piece of shit!" I swear I'm gonn-"

The Soldier on his left struck him with his shoulder, letting him know that it would probably be better to stop talking. He then proceeded to speak to Doc.

"I- I- I'm so sorry Doc! Please excuse his behaviour! Please, sir, I beg you! Have mercy on us! Look, we saw the kid. He had a bracelet. We wanted it! He- He stole it! He had to, right?! Those aren't things you see around, you know! We knew he was a Soldier, he had his uniform on and his badge with him! So we knew he wasn't a Civilian. We would never treat a Civilian as such! No! Never! We know to treat them with utter respect! We just... We ehhh.. We wanted to take it back to you! Yeah, that's it! We wanted to bring it back to its owner! Isn't that right guys? Tell him I'm right guys!"

He was vigorously looking from left to right, seeking a response from his peers. None. No one said anything. They knew it was useless. It wasn't worth it.

"Oh! Is that so, Soldier? Want to know what I think about it? You know, I'm going to let you in on a little secret of mine. It's not like you're going to tell anyone anyway. I see everything. I hear everything. I know everything. I saw the bartender assaulting that young man on the counter. I heard him scream to you guys. I know you ganged up on the poor young man. For me, it appears that you wanted it for yourselves. You know too well how much value an item like that has for someone in your position. Trying to tell me otherwise would be pointless."

One of the Soldiers that haven't talked yet started to panic.

"Wha- How? How did you know all that? We- We were alone in the bar! No one was around! We even closed the door. There's no way you could know about all that! That's just- No! Impossible!"

"I am the all-knowing. Nobody can fool me. I am the God of this place. I am your God. And right now, it's time for me to pass on my last judgement on you impure souls. Farewell".

He uncrossed his hands from behind his back. He brought his right palm in front of him. With a light movement of his hand, he commanded his subordinates to finish them off. Just like that, he left the room, leaving behind him a hellish scenery. Four men, condemned to death, crushed by the unforgiven swings of the baseball bats, smashing their skulls, splashing their blood, punishing their souls.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The young man has been staying in a hospital bed for two days, just to be safe the nurse said. When they first found him, he was in terrible shape. Nose, cheek bones and frontal lobe caved in. Sternum busted. Lungs pierced. Severe concussion. He was lucky not to die. Well, in his case, unlucky to be saved. After only a day he was already all healed, something usually impossible for any living creature. He spent his second day in the medical room, thinking things through.

Being beat up helped him find a place to stay for a bit. But he will still need to find a place after his time here. Something he still hasn't figured out. But that wasn't what he was thinking about. If he wasn't distracted by something else, he would have probably found a solution. But his mind was elsewhere, his curiosity was on something else. That body of his. That was something to be curious about. He couldn't help but reflect on it. Being capable of such feats is unbelievable, not only for a normal 18-year-old but for a human being in itself. His curiosity, already a burden in his opinion, was only starting to grow in him.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

All 21 of them were still in bed. The medical corps were exhausted. Working all day long, shifting shifts, all so they don't lose one more. The situation was finally stable for all of them. They have all been unconscious in their medical bed for 3 days. None of them have woken up yet. The nurses and doctors have been working for 72 hours straight to keep them alive. Their conditions are really serious, but they're all safe now. Their bodies have experienced drastic changes. They wouldn't have made it through if their healing wasn't enhanced by the shot. They are recovering fast, faster than an average human metabolism. But that's not the only thing.

Their body is stronger in every way: speed, strength, stamina, resistance. Everything. They have now surpassed any bonds and human limits. They have yet to realize that. When they wake up, they'll be stricken by their heavy physical handicaps. They will be blinded by their hatred toward the one behind all this. But they will miss the point. This power is a double-edged sword.

The greater the loss, the greater the gain. They won't realize the true frightening power behind the injection. The one that made their body evolve. The one that gave them unique and powerful abilities. The one that turned them into deadly weapons. Weapons capable of taking down any monster, any threat facing them. From this point on, they would finally be able to change their fate. Switch the tide of the battle in their favour.

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