Really Bad Day (3)

Mia's shoulder shook with laughter. In Alex's opinion, Mia's smile easily ripples through the morning sun of New Cascadia. Alex walked beside her, his eyes reflecting the kaleidoscope of emotions, silent but visibly content in her company. They strolled leisurely like another pair of young lovers seeking refuge in the early morning light.

The cool breeze carried the scent from the nearby man-made lake, mingling with street vendor fare. Mia playfully nudged Alex's shoulder, pointing at a holographic billboard that danced above them, advertising the latest VR Coliseum Event. He responded with an amused smile that didn't quite reach his eyes, his gaze momentarily distant, lost in thoughts only he could hear.

But shadows converged behind them as they turned down a less crowded thoroughfare. A group of chimerics moved with a silent, predatory grace. Their presence was hinted at by the subtle shift in the air and the fleeting glances of passersby, who quickly looked away, recognizing the danger that trailed the unsuspecting pair.

Alex seemed to sense something amiss, his smile fading, replaced by a cautious head tilt as if trying to decipher a sound just out of reach. Still optimistic about the day's task, Mia failed to notice the change in him or the encroaching threat.

In an orchestrated maneuver, the chimerics accelerated, a silent signal passing among them. As Mia and Alex neared the mouth of a narrow alley, the gang surged forward. With swift and deliberate force, they shoved the pair off the main street, funneling them into the darkened confines of the alleyway.

Mia stumbled, her surprise etched in wide-eyed disbelief, and Alex's hands flew up, instinctively forming signs that went unnoticed in the chaos. They found themselves trapped, the alley walls rising like indifferent sentinels around them, the entrance now blocked by the imposing figures of the chimerics.

The group's leader stepped forward; his appearance was striking, with his sinuous, muscular build that moves with an eerie, fluid motion reminiscent of the very snakes that contribute to his genetic makeup. His skin carries a subtle, scale-like texture, shimmering faintly with iridescent greens and blacks under certain lights, hinting at his Chimeric heritage. Cold, calculating eyes with vertical pupils and an almost hypnotic green hue fixate on his targets with unsettling intensity.

His face is angular, with high cheekbones and a sharp jawline, framed by short, slicked-back hair that has an unnatural dark sheen. Occasionally, his tongue flickers out in a quick, snake-like motion, tasting the air, adding to the aura of danger that envelops him. His eyes gleamed with a predatory light as he sized up Mia and Alex.

Alex stood protectively in front of Mia, his body language speaking volumes in the absence of words. He silently vowed to shield her even though the soft thrumming of his pulse belied his calm demeanor. Mia reached out, her hand brushing against his, a gesture of unity against the encroaching darkness that loomed before them.

The chimerics circled like wolves, cold grins etching their modified faces as they reveled in the control they wielded over Mia and Alex. With a brusque gesture, they tore Mia from Alex's desperate grasp, her slender frame no match for their brutish strength. She was flung aside, her back slamming against the alley's grimy wall, while two of the gang members pinned Alex, his arms rendered useless.

The leader's mouth moves, words slipping out in a hiss that carries the weight of threats and malice.

His body language is aggressive, his hands gesturing sharply, and the sinuous movement of his arms mirrors the venomous intent of his words. His menacing posture and proximity convey the gravity of his threats.

Alex's eyes widened with mute panic. His lips parted, but no sound emerged—a silent scream lost in the void. His frantic gestures were a dance of despair, fingers shaping words that fell on blind eyes. The realization struck the group of chimerics like a spark to dry kindling; this man couldn't hear them, couldn't plead for mercy or comply with their demands.

A sneer curled the leader's lips as he turned his attention to Mia. The leader of the chimerics drew a blade that gleamed ominously under the flickering streetlight.

Mia's eyes locked with Alex's, a silent apology shimmering in their depths as the first strike came. Her flesh yielded like any human's, but instead of crimson, a stark, milky white seeped out, staining the dirty pavement beneath her.

Recoiling in disgust, the leader realized the nature of Mia's being. The chimerics ripped at her, curiosity transformed into savage ferocity, revealing the intricate lattice of her robotic skeleton beneath the guise of human skin.

Alex's gaze never wavered from Mia's dismembering, even as fists rained down upon him. Each blow should have registered pain, but his mind was a world away, trapped in the echoes of a past that refused to fade.

Two years prior, the clinical sterility of the Cosmic Horizons research lab had been his sanctuary—until one fateful experiment shattered his world. Chemicals erupted in a cacophony of sound and fury, robbing him of his hearing, speech, and the real Mia. The flashbacks unfurled like a grotesque tapestry: Mia's laughter turning to screams, the bright flare of the explosion, the silence that followed—a silence that now swallowed his soul.

As the chimerics vented their rage on his unfeeling form, Alex cradled the fragmented memories of what he had lost, each punch a muted echo of the blast that had taken everything from him. Blood trickled from his battered body, mingling indistinguishably with Mia's artificial lifeblood on the ground—a macabre testament to the brutality of the world they inhabited.

Staggering through the morning light, Alex's silhouette was a dark smudge against the gleaming spires of New Cascadia. The Cosmic Horizons Research Institute loomed ahead, its reflective facade a monolith of knowledge and hope amid a city that had just shown him its cruelest face.

Each step was an agony, a physical testament to the brutality he'd endured. His clothes, torn and stained with the white blood of Mia's synthetic form, clung to his skin. The relentless hum of the city filled the void where sound used to have meaning for him. But in his mind, screams echoed—the silent remnants of memories he could never escape.

The world blurred at the edges, pain, and loss warping his vision as he pushed forward on sheer willpower. The institute's automatic doors parted with a silent swish, a gateway to what was once a sanctuary now transformed into his last refuge.

Inside, the pristine halls were deserted at this early hour, fluorescents casting stark shadows over Alex's stumbling form. He left a trail of blood—a dark contrast to the antiseptic cleanliness of the facility. Each ragged breath he drew was a struggle, his body crying out for respite.

He collapsed mere meters from the reception desk, the impact sending a shockwave of pain through his already shattered frame. Alex's hand groped along the cool floor, seeking anything to hold onto. But there was nothing, only the sleek, unyielding surface of sterile tile.

In a final, desperate act, he lifted his head, eyes locking on the security camera above. With the last vestige of strength, he mouthed a single, guttural word—an appeal that transcended the silence that had become his constant companion.

"Help."

The word was a mere whisper shaped by voiceless lips, but it carried the weight of untold suffering and the faintest glimmer of hope. As consciousness slipped away, Alex's battered form lay still, the plea hanging in the air—a silent call to the indifferent expanse of the cosmos.