Intermission 1

Back in her laboratory, the day couldn't have been worse than this. No, it could've been way worse. "Don't think bullshit." While it is bad, the chances of it being worse were still on the table.

The analysis of the two boy's blood is unquestionably an affront to science and genetics. "Just what is going on with people and the world around us?" Looking to the other side of her humble lab, black plastic bags with their contents still moving inside.

"What are they? Cockroaches?" The doctor thinks bitterly. In the brief examination of them, they are more related to animals than insects, yet having their spine destroyed is not a sure kill against them, just crippling.

Amelia fights off the urge to facepalm. "I have to get my hands disinfected first, and then go back to work." Looking at the crude and fast analysis of the boy's blood samples, the binding of their future is grim.

Looking at the samples again, the doctor stares at them with extreme annoyance and angsty. "The black-haired one has canid DNA, the other one doesn't even show what the other shares of it."

It should've been impossible. The tests weren't meant to see those things, yet they were strong enough to overshadow the human aspect of their blood. 

Even worse, the redhead's blood samples are unstable, degrading by the second, almost like crumbling away, this type of thing is anything but normal. "Who am I to judge them? Got "Witch Doctor" as my power."

Funny in retrospect how a doctor slash scientist like her would get a Witch Doctor from a bloody gacha game that foretold the apocalypse. "I want to drink so badly…" Amelia sucks her lips and bites them, holding back the urge to call it a day, get disinfected, and go hang out with whiskey and beers. 

"The world is ending and there are no other doctors to get this job done. I hate this world country so much. Should've listened to Maria and moved out to Europe." No matter how hateful the situation or the extra hours are, work is work, and it needs to be done as fast as possible.

"No pressure, just the fact that communications cut out across half the country already. No pressure, work as fast and precisely as you can." Ignoring the languish whines of the monsters bagged, the doctor continues to study the impossible blood samples.

"The blood of the red hair is a mystery. No match in any database I have access to, no close match. This shit just is. Even the teenage boy's blood did match with something." How alien a blood should be to have no match at all? Nothing related to it?

"Maybe this type of thing is not human or even possible by the laws we know it." Despite the impossibility and going against everything science stands for, the chances of it being pure magic and supernatural bullshit grow exponentially with which passing second.

Amelia's mouth dries. Maybe it is the stress, the work or the sleep deprivation finally getting to her, but the chances of it being honest to God are no longer just madman's talk. "How to explain to the high-up that it has no explanation besides magic?"

There is no good way to explain this to anyone else. "Hell, even I refuse to believe it." A brat picking lightning bolts and those with alien blood were far easier to accept as reality than supernatural and folklore.

There are flaws in this reasoning. Some things would be impossible even in the wildest scientific theories. How could these beings still be alive despite the damage their bodies sustained? How could the blood of young men acquire impossible qualities overnight?

"This is bullshit." As if agreeing, one of the still living bodies whines in pain. Normal days are going to be extinct "Wait. If the shit is going to hit the fan, who will pay my salary and the extra hours?"

Amelia suppresses a growl. The hours are going to be loooong from now on— "Hey, Doctor Amelia. Hours have passed, have you finished your testing on the blood samples?" An annoyingly calm voice asks from the interphone. 

"No, Major Anthony. I'm having some big problems with impossibilities." As long as the Lt Colonel doesn't call, there is no need to haste things more than they already are, things would get messier if rushed.

"Too bad, I think. We got a fresh vegetable monster for you alongside… something interesting. We will send them in by the backdoor of your lab." At least they brought another test subject… sadly they didn't bring an assistant, anyone capable of helping would've been better than another test subject.

"Ha, they are busy taking care of people. Studying the monsters is not that important, bla bla bla." Getting up from the chair, the doctor goes to the "backdoor" to see what the soldiers have brought. "If they say something is interesting… Ha, it will be a surprise."

Walking for a minute, the doctor reaches the destination, the "backdoor" of the humble laboratory.

Its gate opens to reveal a couple of soldiers in protective suits, bringing yet another plastic bag with a monster inside. However, a soldier carries something in a cylinder, a sickly purple goo inside of it. "Good to see you are in a hazmat suit already. You wouldn't move from your office to here otherwise."

Major Anthony is there, wearing protective gear as well. "There is nothing good about this situation. I'm still working alone in this place and overworking for everything else. Can you not bring someone to help me deal with the bullshit?"

The Major just laughs it off. "Sorry, Doctor. We don't have the personnel at the moment. I hope you understand it." In other words, she is left to work there alone for good knows how long.

"You have to be kidding me." Holding back the urge to take a deep breath, there is something important to be taken care of. "What is that purple thing? It appears to be some kind of withered mass?"

Despite the color, the appearance is close enough to a carcass that spent too much time near a water body. Just where did they get it? "Why is this important? It is just slime." For some reason, the Major laughs. 

"A guy touching a sword made it. He touched it and flames withered a monster into this purple goo." For a moment, all thoughts evaded her mind. Flames withered something into a goo.

"More work for me, I guess. I swear this shit can only be magic." Screw that, her day just got worse. There is no way for this to be possible. "You are joking, right?" For her question, there is no answer but silence.

He is not joking, that indeed happened. "Just place it in a suitable area. It is just the byproduct of rot, right? Then there isn't much info I can get from it." Thankfully, it wouldn't be another tiresome task to deal with.

"You seem to forget, Doctor, it is made by supernatural spooky fire. It may not have the normal properties we are used to. Don't you agree?" Looking at his face, it never looked so punchable before…

"I will see what I can do. Make sure to ask on my behalf for more hands for the lab. Things are getting too busy here." Waving his hand, Anthony dismisses the issue.

"You are doing well on your own. Besides, you have more than enough company inside the lab, no?" That was the poorest attempt at a joke she ever heard. Is he even joking? The carefree tone makes it hard to discern what is a joke or not.

"Your words are not encouraging, major." This time, he waves his hand in a more desperate tone. As if trying to apologize for what he had said.

"Sorry, it was a poor joke on my part. I will bring the issue to the Lieutenant Colonel, but I can't guarantee it will work." Not ideal but good enough given the circumstances, it is the best she is going to get from them.

"I pray for good tidings in your work, Doctor." With a sigh, Amelia turns back, heading to the insides of the laboratory alongside the soldiers carrying the "samples" for her next couple of work hours.

"I, too, pray for a good tidying in this hole."

(...)

"Dealing with that doctor is always hard. Good thing she was in a good mood today." One of the soldiers under his command complains. While not wrong, they had to at least feign to understand the fact she was working alone there. It doesn't do wonders for someone's mood.

"She is working alone there for an entire day, nonstop. It would ruin anyone's mood, guys." This draws a laugh from the other soldiers. It wasn't meant to be a joke, but he can understand why they are laughing…

"She would be in a shitty mood either way. She is only happy when drinking her brains out." This prompts a smile out of everyone, him included. True, Amelia is the type to always see a cup half empty, and be angry at it.

Shaking his head, he steps out of their locker room, in his "casual" clothes, as far as casual goes in this emergency across the world. "Did you see those boys? They were ripping monsters apart barehanded. Don't you feel scared by talking with them?"

A slightly shorter soldier asks if he is not mistaken, his name is— "Don't worry, Mark. Kyrie Jensen is… reasonable, Konrad appears to be a good boy." The fact that the apparent "leash" for Cain, Kyrie, is reasonable is good enough news.

At the very least, of the two, Kyrie is reasonable enough to maintain his stance and think things through, while his friend doesn't appear to share the same level of conscious thinking.