PROGRESSIONS AND FAILURES

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"Join us"

"Considering that I might not live to tell?"

"It depends."

          *sigh*

"... It doesn't seem like I have a choice"

"Mr. Sri.... please, look him up the details"

"Welcome aboard kid!!"

I had joined Dan and the world powerhouses in their villainous world annihilation motive as I had to figure out who my adversaries were after progressing with my newly awaken time warp prowess. I had tried to absorb the waves only to no avail, not until after several trials and failures, the space around me distorted and I traversed back a second in time. I could only do that much, and I knew it wasn't enough but I was stuck in between the lines.

The darkness that covered my sight was unveiled and I squinted my eyes to avoid the sudden brightness. I could see two huge well-built mercenaries sitting beside me, with Mr. Sri in the front passenger seat of the vehicle as we drove through a creepy gate. We had arrived at the hideout. The huge building looked like a science factory of some sort and it wouldn't be so hard to notice if it weren't that the world power-houses were involved in the scheme. One of the mercenaries brought out a remote control from the side pocket of his suit and pressed a button on it. The thin cuffs that restrained my hands were released the next minute, and we dropped off the luxurious Flobile. There wasn't a teleportation system in the Low-lands so we went by the vehicle and I was blindfolded to avoid 'mistakes'.

Scientists dressed in their iconic white lab coats walked about with files in hand as we elevated by the transparent conveyor. It was specifically a large project to eliminate the world's 'shortcomings'. I couldn't help but wonder how Dan got into this mess, in the upper echelon as well. The higher-ups of the world can only be insane and crazy to go to this extent as I see no reason for them to do this. And most of all, they'd do this to their own kind? They surely are a relative devil... perhaps, the devil had been all of us from the start.

The conveyor stopped and I followed behind them silently, the sounds of boot soles clicked and clanked as we walked through the floor, only to stop in front of a room with a tightly-shut technological door that surely wouldn't budge without the recognizance of an authority. The door behind held a certain secret if not several and I was about to be involved in it, but I wasn't in a bit nervous and somehow, it felt strange how easy they would want to reveal secrets regarding the fact that I might have a distinct plan. Perhaps, they must have guessed there was no running away since, I was a tiny little ant that could be trampled upon, any time.

The door slid open automatically when Mr. Sri stepped forward, confirming my doubts of him being a relevant authority in the scheme. The room lit up instantly and I saw a surgical bed in a reverse Trendelenburg's position with several restraints, right in the middle of the room. My thoughts were only on one objective

'Torture!!!!'

My head spun and sank as I felt weak suddenly, I fell on my knees. My whole body ached as a wave of pain hit me, the pain felt familiar, yet, far away. I could see myself in a dark space, rotten wounds, aching muscles, joints and nerves and blood all over. The echoes wouldn't stop and my head drummed in a disordered bass, as if the joker decided to hold an antique music concert. When I felt that I couldn't bare it anymore, and I felt like I was fading away slowly in a pool of acid, a wave of ease and relief washed away all the pain and the disarrayed music ended in a melancholic solemn as my consciousness drifted away.

......

"The patient suffered from Post-traumatic stress disorder" A deep mechanical voice echoed in my head, strangely, I couldn't see anything. A part of my forehead felt heavy for no reason and I frowned in contempt, my eyelids were shut close as if they were being pressed down by an invisible force. Then everything went blank again, the darkness twirled into different colors until images formed tragic memories.

"Aaaah!!!"

"Danger!! High dopamine level detected! Initiating IV sedation!" A wave of ease washed through my body ensuing the robotic voice before darkness loomed all over, taking absolute control.

*Eep*

*beep*

When I was a kid, I seldom visit hospitals and that was only when I am severely ill. I am allergic to walnuts, and I remember that one time I had persistently consumed walnuts out of curiosity, after a kid from Third Junior Grade told me allergies wear-off after building a sort of subconscious tolerance towards it. I ended up with a swollen throat and was rushed to a hospital. The annoying beeping sounds made me restless and I wonder why they never get turned off; it got to the point that I made a complaint about it, but all I got in return was a bitter smile. To this day, even though I knew that the beeping sounds should never turn off, I still hated it.

*Beep*

I felt a sense of nostalgia as my eyes fluttered open to find myself lying on a bed that doesn't look like the one in my room, in fact, it looked more like a bed made for patients in the hospital. My movements were restrained by the feeding tubes that stuck on several parts of my body. I looked down to see that I was wearing a hospital gown that looked rather... Comical.

"What happened?" I asked myself and soon as I tried to recollect my memories, my head felt heavy and a sharp pain pierced through. A short while later, I realized, after the severe headache subsided, that I must have collapsed after suffering from PTSD, according to what the 'Medbot' had said earlier when I was semi-conscious; uncertain if that was how one would feel being in a state of coma. Thinking about what had made me this way, I felt a slight fear and I shivered as I continuously reminded myself that it was over- no more of that.

I removed the feeding tube and looked around, trying to figure out if I was still in the organization. Soon, a Middle-aged man in a white lab coat came in.

'Principal MDR. Geoffrey Caesar' was written on his tag and judging from the coat style, the same type was worn by several scientists of the organization, so, I was still in there.

"Hello, Feeling better?"

"Uh... Yeah, thanks" I stuttered to say almost with no space in between as I was caught off guard by his childish voice.

"You suffered from a post-traumatic stress disorder... Although, you'll soon be discharged, I recommend you consult a Psychotherapist." He warned.

"I-"

"That aside, do take caution as we've planted a tracker that would detonate at our command on you" he said with a poker face that contradicted his childish tone and the severity of his words. He was literally telling me that they only didn't kill me to keep me and that it doesn't mean they trusted me; and wouldn't kill me any minute. A cold sweat broke on my forehead as I had been made directly a puppet of the organization. A wrong step, a single wrong step was all it would take for me to die at this point, and there was no opting out. It's either I die or I cooperate, a very effective measure. More so, for someone like me who didn't want to waste this second chance in life I hold on dearly to?

I realized that I was wrong, naive and stupid. Why did I have to approach Dan again, and tell him about the end of the world, letting the exact same scene happen again just because I wanted to know my adversaries by joining him? It was a good plan, but I had underestimated him too much, I could have just killed him and save myself the stress, but, having seen how large the organization was, I wasn't so sure if that would have worked out well.

"We can see what you see, and receive what you hear in our systems. Choose wisely!" He continued and ended with a stupid smile that I wanted to so much wipe off his good-looking face. I trembled as fear subdued me at the thought of me dying again and going back into the Time space, to face the eternal torment one more time.

I was played, too well played, and again I was the fool.  They fooled me once and quite okay, the blame was on them, but now? They had fooled me twice and it is definitely a big shame on me. How could I have allowed that? I literally just trapped myself.

Yet, my dumbfounded brain yelled to go remove the tracker, somehow, any what, as if!!

 I was in utter despair, fear and shock this moment and I knew that I needed one thing, and that is, to configure myself or I might end up dead, again. I was no longer saving the world, I had to save myself.