Imprisonment

[Warden]

The lights turned on in a room overlooked by Anya, Defense Minister Guido Gross, and several other men Anya could only assume were high ranking Rheinland officials. Helmut lay strapped across a surgeon's table, near naked, though no tools were present in the room that indicated a medical procedure. The machines he was hooked up to were prepared as if the test did not want to cover any part of Helmut, with wires tucked under and around the table to minimize exposure.

Two men emerged from the doorway farthest from Anya and the audience, carrying a cage, from which emerged a faint blue-purple glow.

"We've found an enhancement, Anya," Guido whispered into her ear, still facing forward, "For our soldiers. Or, at least we believe it to be an enhancement. Of course, all things need testing, and so, this is where your prisoners come in."

The men set down the cage on the cart next to the surgeon's table, opening it and quickly stepping away. From within the cage emerged a blue being, almost like a caterpillar, yet in the same sense a squid. It slithered, slowly, towards Helmut, who began to writhe and jerk in an attempt to escape from the being.

Once near Helmut, the being began to quicken its pace, moving to position itself over Helmut's still squirming torso. What could only be a head emerged from the main body, long and slender, and probed Helmut's torso. All at once, though, it tore his flesh, causing a gasp amongst the audience and invoking a scream from Helmut. It slithered within Helmut, as a caterpillar would. Helmut continued to writhe and squirm, as if trying to push the being out of himself, somehow. After five minutes of watching the being slowly encroach into Helmut, he suddenly stopped moving completely.

Helmut's head fell to the side, limp, as if he had died. His heart-rate, breathing, and bodily functions all showed irregular on the machines. Jumping between high and low, quick breaths and small, as if something had stopped his autonomous functions and he was forced to do so manually. After a minute, though, Helmut's body returned to normal, even the bleeding which occurred at the small hole where the creature had entered on his torso had ceased, and Helmut's eyes gained focus. The men relesaed the straps which held Helmut in place, and he moved, erratically at first, but slowly regained control of his movements.

At this point, many of the men had stood, and began chatting with each other, rather regularly, about both menial things, and the experiment. Anya sat, fixated on the Helmut's body, though, she doubted that at this point that it was still his own. Even as the men began to leave the room, Anya remained fixated on the body which moved subtly on the table.

"Anya," Guido said, not yet standing either, "I do believe it is time to go."

"Yes," Anya responded, standing abruptly, yet still looking forward through the window, "We should go."

Guido stood, and left the room. Anya looked yet for half a minute more, looking at the troublemaker of Vierlande. Though, this time, he stared back, through the one-way glass, straight at Anya. Anya was unsure whether or not it was Helmut, or something else, but, she knew it was looking directly at her.