Test Subjects

The institute isn't just some small organization, it's more than that. Even the doctors had ranks, ranging from those with powers, more intellect, and more strength to those with neither, more or less the victims of this organization, the lab rats, the experiments, us.

The Doctors had special abilities like super strength, super speed, and more that had no side effects as they had been tested on our bodies. Most of the doctors wanted that power and the institute would give them, only if they signed a nondisclosure form and were willing to do whatever the institute commanded them to, so their ranks were increased and they were the ones tasked with doing the grim and evil stuff like torturing, murdering, burning of the test subjects.

The security on the other hand are not offered these special abilities, they have however signed a nondisclosure form too and are paid handsomely because they act as cleaners moving the dead bodies from the institute.

Dr. Stone on the other hand was a special doctor, even the institute was named after him, Stone Psychological institute. He is the head of the Doctors and the most powerful among everyone in the institute minus 'the unknown' who is so strong beyond belief. Of course, Dr. Stone is the second most powerful with his ability to move at sonic speed which made him perform things people thought were magic like the whip he used on the test subjects at superspeed. Dr. Stone is still merely a pawn in someone else's game but he is also dangerous even though he answered to someone else. Someone who had no trace, even the doctor himself did not know who this person was, he just worked for the person.

The most dangerous of them all is the unknown, his presence still haunts me. The last time I had seen him, no I saw just his shadow, he had killed a hundred black hounds, successful test subjects who were given jobs in the black market to assassinate anyone the institute chose and he killed a hundred of them in a minute, his power was unbelievable. He had killed them because they tried to escape the institute and no one saw his face, everyone feared that they would die if they left the institute so no one attempted to leave the institute again. Hence, everyone called him the unknown.

The Institute was divided into three locations, two were places where the test subjects were kept and one was a security company where the black hounds were kept. These so-called black hounds were once test subjects who were trained in combat, martial arts, and weaponry, with other survival and tactical skills to hone their physical prowess and strength, after becoming good at killing and great stealth, they are deployed to the Institutes security company where they are sent on missions which the institute provides but firstly there are microchips inserted in their nape's which tracks their movement and deletes any camera feed that captures them but me, Reed also known as Subject X8. My microchip was different as it erases me in real-time and only Dr. Stone knows the reason why he did that.

Once someone becomes a Black Hound he is offered to live a normal life but with a code, a code which you must abide by, a code which is also a rule and once invoked you must obey no matter what, the code or rule which states that once one is summoned for duty he must obey or will regret and most people who would dare try to disobey regret almost immediately they disobey and thus this made the other Blackhounds scared to leave.

Amongst the chaos and destruction behind the institute and the control the institute had, there was one person the institute couldn't bring under their control who was the unknown.

***

MANY YEARS AGO

Echoes, a pair of shoes echo as the soles clash against the concrete floor of the cold and empty hallway.

The man walking through the hallway is none other than Dr. Ethan Stone, a renowned medical doctor who is known for his special talent more like his gift which is, that he never loses a patient under his care, or at least that was what the world saw and he is also known with his obsession and desperate desire of mythology and unlocking the key to human life " the full human potential" as he called it.

The clock ticks alarming everyone in the room that it's noon and everyone in the room starts to shiver. The door suddenly unlocks and Doctor Stone appears in his lab coat with two hefty men behind him.

" Subject X8, you are chosen for today's test" he spoke to some children in the room who were of age varying from Seven to fourteen years of age and a boy of at least Thirteen years of age stood up to speak.

" No asshole, I won't let you take my brother, you hear me, I will never..." he was about to continue when a slap swept across his face which threw him away from where he was and he landed close to the wall with him bleeding from his nose and lips and he cower back in fear.

" I repeat subject X8, you are chosen for today's test," he said and left the room with frightened children. A young boy of ten years of age stood up and followed immediately behind the doctor.

***

" Beep, beep, beep" is all the ten-year-old could hear apart from the noise that surrounded him when the doctors rushed up and down trying to make sure that the boy survived. All sorts of syringes penetrated the boy's skin in an attempt to save him.

HOURS LATER

" Subject X8 is finally awake Dr. Ryan Sir," a nurse said.

"Okay inform Dr. Stone," Dr. Ryan said to one of the Doctors, and the boy on the operation bed blinked severally adjusting to the light.

After he blinked a couple of times the doctors around him tried to clean him up when an explosion occurred sending everyone in the room to hit the wall but Subject X8 was strapped to the bed so he was okay. The door was flung open and the thirteen-year-old boy from earlier came in.

"How are you feeling Reed " he said to the boy on the bed.

" I'm fine I don't seem hurt at all," he said and the thirteen-year-old sighed.

" Good then, let's get the hell out of here "

" but Steven what about those men "

" I'll handle them don't worry"

" Steven we'll have to go now before they send more guards " A girl of probably thirteen years of age spoke to him as she stood by the door.

" Come and help me remove these cuffs from Reed, Jennifer"

"sure" she replied and they both removed the cuffs by inserting the key they took from one of the guards. The three of them rushed out of the operating room and met the other test subjects in the hallway leading to a door with EXIT inscribed at the top.

As they rushed out they found themselves in another room that was pitch black, the lights went on and they saw about fifty guards in the room, and behind them were a lot more running towards them but before they knew what was going on syringes were shot at them which led them all to sleep.

***

Steven slowly opened his eyes and found out that he was in a bright room which had white paint and he blinked severally adjusting to the light.

" Wakey wakey " Steven heard a voice and when he looked to his right he saw a doctor, not just any doctor but the doctor who had Dr. Ethan Stone inscribed on his ID card, this made Steven's heart beat faster with a scared look on his face.

" Yes, I know you planned this escape but... but I'm not going to punish you " Steven's face calmed down a bit "Just yet" Dr. Stone continued with a smile on his face.

"You're going to regret your decision as your beloved brother would be the next test subject of Project Z where his blood would be drained and a different blood would be put into his body after he finishes recovering from the present test he just went through. See you later Subject K4" Dr. Stone said and left and Steven collapsed on the bed.

***

PRESENT

Reed woke up to a banging headache, he checked the time and it was eight pm, he sighed and went to the mirror to check his face before he went out of his room. He looked at the mirror and his once dreamy brown eyes were now not at all dreamy as they had turned red from sleeping and his slick blonde hair now stuck to his face, all this as a result of taking too much alcohol and sleeping all day. He sighed once more shaking his head and left his room, locking the door behind him. He would go to the pharmacy and pick up some pain relief before going to his friend Charlotte's house, one of the people he had made friends with from the institute, he thought and left the room.