Standing in front of a plain white room, Mr. Darkling and Charles watched the two-year-old Henry playing with his toys. The had taken the elevator further down to reach the last floor, where Henry was confined in.
Nobody except a handful knows that Henry is Mr. Darkling's son, and most don't even know he existed there.
As Mr. Darkling silently observed him, Henry looked towards him, and immediately, his purple eyes glowed red momentarily. Sending a forceful short wave of energy to them.
Mr. Darkling was the least affected, and so was Charles, he had understood the message. That was the devil, reminding them of his presence.
It wasn't long before Henry continued playing.
"Let's go" Mr. Darkling said to Charles as they turned and left.
†**********†
A black haired woman in a lab coat walked to Henry's confined room, now he was five years old, and understood more of his surroundings.
She walked into him while he lay down, using his hands to support the back of his head and facing the ceiling with closed eyes.
Heaving a sigh, she opened the door to Henry's room with just a swipe of her I.D.
"Henry, it's time for the next test." She said. Henry stood up, faced down and walked towards her. She handcuffed him and led him out to the lab.
Henry's facial features were becoming more defined, his long eyelashes, perfect jawline and a pair of sparkling eyes, except that his eyes now looked dead; he was gorgeous.
The only place he knew was his small, spaced white room and the lab, where he runs all sorts of tests on him.
He had teachers who taught him, but he didn't have people to converse with. He had nothing to think of, no personal interest and his curiosity about the world outside was enshrouded with the thought that there was no outside world for him.
The only time he managed to see or meet people was when he went to train on how to fight. He passed other workers but never got to talk to any of them.
.....
"Ma'am, he's here", the woman in the lab coat reports.
The lab assistant announced to Augustina who was busy typing on her computer. In the room was another brown-haired man who was studying the lab rat.
Tina stopped typing and looked at the boy who was still looking downward; she heaved a long sigh before picking up her notepad and pen, "He knows what to do; let's get started."
The man spared a pitiful glance at Henry as he went to a machine that had a lot of buttons and a lever beside it.
The female assistant walks up to him and unlocks his handcuffs. Henry started to undress immediately; after he was done he walked towards the large tube in the middle that was already open.
The lab assistant was surprised at not only his build as a five-year-old but also the number of scars he had on him. He had different types of bruises, cuts, injections, burn marks, and some unidentifiable ones. His face was spared from the eyesore.
This wasn't her first time seeing it, but she still couldn't get used to it.
~drip, drip~
It was Henry, tears dropped from his eyes as he cried. It was heartbreaking seeing him cry every time he was about to undergo an experiment.
He had already accepted his fate, but the pain that followed with it was difficult to bear and carry. He was alone, utterly alone, he had no company. Hell, he felt less and less of a human every single day.
It was his fifth time coming for an experiment on that same day and it wasn't even evening yet.
Tina knew she shouldn't let her emotions get the best of her; she felt guilty and pity for him more than anybody else in that room, but she had to follow orders, or maybe this once wouldn't hurt to break the rules.
She would happily face the consequences later, but now she's doing it her own way. She walks up to Henry and taps him on the shoulder.
"Sighs... I thought that you must have gotten used to this by now, but I guess you can't get used to the pain. Let's have this round of experiments, and you will be done for the day.
She would have stopped the experiment if she hadn't already prepared the resources needed, and his dad was requesting results for the one she was about to perform.
She could come up with an excuse not to do the rest that same day, but he needed to go through this one; she couldn't control it.
With a nod of his head, Henry wiped his tears with the back of his hand, but Tina used her handkerchief to properly clean his face.
Henry entered the tube which closed with a press of a button. With another button, machines started injecting Henry with several doses of different drugs at the same time.
"Aaargh!"
He screamed his lungs out. Immediately after the machines were done injecting him, a green liquid flowed into the tube. Henry was quick enough to hold his breath before it drowned him.
"Pull the lever, Dreyfuss!" Tina commanded, and Dreyfuss, the male assistant, pressed some buttons on the machine and pulled the lever.
In response to the lever pulling, the large formation set above the tube activated. It rolled in different directions and then let out a series of blue rays that covered the tube and sucked the water into it.
Tina watched carefully, but before the water got to the formation a purple lightning struck from Henry's body and disarmed the array.
~blog, blog, blog~
Henry's muffled scream and struggle in the water filled the air; Tina watched closely; as soon as Henry passed out, the water got sucked into his body.
†**********†
It was evening and Henry was lying unconscious in his confinement room.
The lab chief watched him as she picked up her phone and dialled a number and after a few rounds of ringing it was picked up
"What's the report?"
"Sir, I have the results for the afternoon experiment, and I have sent them to you, however...
"Fine, he's off for today, just send in the report." He replied and hung up.
"..." She didn't know whether she should be happy or not; he did well giving him a day off, but the kid was supposed to be his son, not his toy to use.
She didn't have any right to be angry, she was part of this after all, she cursed herself as her conscience pricked her on her way out for some alcohol
.....
Mr. Darkling was in his office and carefully studied the results Tina had sent to him.
He picks up his telephone and calls Charles. "Hello, sir", Charles answers his telephone.
"They can all pay a visit now." He said to Charles, Charles affirmed and he hung up.
Charles heaved a long sigh. He knew that life was going to get more difficult for the young master, but he couldn't disobey the man he had been serving for almost all his life.
He picks up his phone, types a message, and then sends it. The message read.
"It all begins now"