We are still here, but we have so many things on our focus at the moment! Give us more time and we’ll finish revising chapter three and release chapter four!
Returning into the stifling heat outside brought a problem back to his attention; his olfactory senses were not as toned down as they used to be.
Alex fervently tried to get his nose in check, to no avail. Puzzled, he scratched his head, when he realized instead of a hood…”A bandanna?”
It could work. He’d have it covering his nose and mouth, add some of those neat flower pheromones he picked up when he experimented with consuming plants (they were surprisingly tedious to process), and thus solve the problem of sensitivity. A sheet of tendrils weaved over the lower half of his face, carrying the scent of a flower shop with them. Much better.
He perked up when he noticed the howl of walkers not too far from him. It was time to fatten up a little, if he was going to take on a non-frozen copy of himself.
Jumping back into the all too familiar action, Alex launched himself towards the small group of minor infected. To his dismay, he could only form one hand into a claw, still as meager as before. Beggars can’t be choosers, I guess.
At full speed, he snatched one of the charging walkers and clawed its deformed “face” off. Feeder tendrils tore forth greedily, reassembling his meal’s body into biomass for his own use. It felt like a rush, a gust of fresh air, an encompassing sense of rejuvenation he last remembered feeling on his first consumption. Alex shook his head to clear the fuzzy feeling and whirled, catching an incoming walker with a backhand and snapping its neck. It, too, was welcomed by the gluttonous tendrils. The high had him giggling through the fight, and not before long all walkers had been reduced to bits and pieces. He let his claws retract, relishing the returned sensation of biomass rebuilding and reshaping itself within his body.
Onwards and upwards. Alex was going to find one of those new hunters and make it his next meal.
As a super-mutant virus-being which could jump multiple stories high with no issue, such hunter was quickly found. Alex again remarked the hideous face of the thing, a jaw studded with warts and putrid remains of its victims, topped off by two rows of hand-sized teeth. Its flaming-red eyes finally caught him, and the thing’s maw presented itself in its full gory glory. Landing on the hunter’s right, Alex swung his claws at its bulging shoulder, scraping over the far too thick hide—
“Huh!”
—to which the hunter responded with a shoulder-bash. A dumbfounded Alex went flying into a car wreck. Of fucking course.
Snarling as he was showered by glass shards, he got to his feet, only to be pinned back against the heavily-dented car door. Alex squirmed frantically beneath the hunter’s weight, cussing a stream of vulgarities at the oppressing force. The foul-smelling maw before him began to unclamp like a pair of hydraulic scissors, which he unfortunately recalled had a cutting force of 1,25 mega newton. Think fast, get out.
With a swift kick to its throat, it winced enough for Alex to slip underneath it. He summoned his skimpy claws another time and struck with full force along the softer underside of the doomed hunter. Feeling his weapons slice through the insides elicited a sense of triumph. What Alex hadn’t considered was the aftermath. The hunter—now gutted like a fish—shrieked for the last time and promptly collapsed. Sputtering from the gore, Alex clawed at the carcass with his hands and tendrils, finally pulling a large part of the hunter into himself. The rest flopped onto the asphalt beside him. He lay there for a couple more seconds, panting. He hated being put into tight spaces. A moment later, Alex dissolved into a mess of red and black, absorbing the left-overs of the hunter with a none too pleased growl. Reluctantly, he got up, reminding himself to keep moving.
He dashed up the side of the nearest building, fully enjoying the rush of wind again, hopping from rooftop to rooftop. Running through the city like this always kicked his own thought processes a gear higher, something which was a blessing for him, especially on days when the disembodied voices and images started to crowd his senses. The clarity brought on by wind, roses, and lavender returned to him a forgotten idea. Alex moved the majority of his newly-gained biomass into his legs, jumping with all his force upon reaching the roof’s edge. The biomass rushing back into his upper body sent him soaring into the uncomfortably hot, red sky. At the apex of his launch, he shifted into a horizontal position and spread his arms. A vast array of miniscule tendrils raced across his body, simulating a spinning motion: the magnus effect. A Gentek scientist named Dr. Harris Widgeir had observed some footage of the feared ZEUS when he noted his gliding capabilities were (even if fascinating) still limited, and could be improved upon. Thanks to Alex’s dumb luck (and much to Dr. Widgeir’s horror), he just so happened to be in one of the many military outpost labs which he’d raided whenever they appeared. While Alex noticed his gliding was going a little less smoothly than before due to the increased air drag, the glide distance was definitely increased. From up here, he could easily see Penn Station! And what he saw was not all too good. A group of red-glowing, arm-bladed people, featuring his doppelganger in the middle (he seems to have gained a few followers), stood opposite to another of the same sort. Must be Hades.
Alex noticed one of the group looking up in surprise; he had been spotted. The man looked around nervously, uncertain. He wanted to raise an alarm, even though the mighty Zeus was speaking, so his attempted interruption was immediately silenced by another’s elbow to his arm. But the small elbow snap was nothing to what came next. Thick tendrils erupted from Zeus, and Alex watched in horror as the screaming mass of people was torn asunder and pulled into the man at the center. Alex tore his eyes from the disturbing scene and hugged his legs, plummeting downwards like a stone. Best to remain undetected by Zeus. But as it stood, he had to get there fast. Hades was alone, and faced terrible odds.
He hit the ground running at top speed, determined to get answers for the crimes committed by what appeared to be his twin. Alex Mercer, falsely known to the world as an even more irredeemable monster than he was before. And still so few even knew that the true artificers of this cataclysm were Blackwatch and Gentek. No, that wasn’t the prime source of the sheer anger he was experiencing. He needed to know why. What in the world made Zeus turn around, stomp with vehemence on his previous beliefs, that the virus only brought even more suffering, and simply give the infection another go. It turned its unwilling victims into mindless, shambling aberrations or straight-up Runners; slaves to instinct, to survival and reproduction of the virus. In essence, they were all the same. And that is what terrified the living Blacklight virus about the Redlight virus. The chaotic monotony of the hivemind. Never again. And not on his watch.
Penn Station, once a bustling transportation hub in Manhattan before his time, was almost as unrecognizable as the rest of the borough’s remains. Crumbling, breaking, and all together giving in to the virus’ biomass draped across its walls and roof, Alex doubted it would stand for much longer. It was a dead husk, just like the majority of the island’s inhabitants. He slowed to a jog before the building, and peered at the roof’s edge. He was anxious to chew out the imposter, but considering that even an oversized hunter caused him some trouble, he really wasn’t sure whether he was in any place to do so. He was immediately shaken from his self-doubt when the screaming began. A bunch of people seemed to be experiencing the greatest terror of their lives by the sound of it, and Alex would be lying to himself if he didn’t admit it was unsettling. But the Hades guy was up there. And most importantly, he was Alex Mercer, the feared Monster of Manhattan (it didn’t have quite the same ring anymore, really, considering who the real monster was). He’d withstood Blackwatch and faced whatever Greene or Randall had thrown at him. Nothing had ever stopped him, and that wouldn’t change today. At least not for him. So he took a deep breath, steeled himself, and clambered to the roof.
He didn’t know what he was expecting besides finding an utterly ruined building, but for some reason he had still come here.
St. Paul’s Hospital
Well, he had nowhere else to go...
Alex shaped his right hand into a claw (which looked a lot smaller than he was used to) and tore away the thick tendrils blocking the entrance. Once inside he found even more biomass spreading over the remains of the entrance’s information desk. And pretty much everything else. Hacking and slashing away at the viral vines, Alex made his way to the staircase and down to the dark morgue. A pathologist named Professor Bradley Ragland had worked here. Once, he had saved Alex’s life from a cancer that had been devouring him and helped locate his sister’s infected kidnapper. He’d been incredibly thankful that someone was willing to help him, considering most people either ran away from him screaming or wanted to end his life. But now he wasn’t sure whether Ragland was still alive either. Which made him realize that going to the morgue may have been a pointless endeavour.
Alex shoved the left-over half of the morgue’s double-door to the side with a little bit too much force, sending it flying off its rusty hinges. It smashed into the room’s far-right corner, splintering loudly. Alex flinched; he’d probably get unwanted attention from equally unwanted guests.
Giving the deserted morgue a quick look revealed a clear lack of bodies, and when Alex took a closer look at the floor and the tables (which were still in place and mostly untouched by the creeping biomass, to his surprise) he found no documents or notes. The blackboard next to the computer was also wiped clean, save for a fine layer of dust.
Alex stood in the room, completely lost. Now what? He glanced at the monitor on the table. If he was lucky for once, the computer might still work and he could check the date. Certain that the power was off, he took a look around for the circuitry box. The moment the electricity returned, lights flickered on in the morgue. With that, the place looked a lot more familiar already. Only one thing missing: The Doc himself.
“Where the hell did you go, Ragland?”, Alex thought out loud.
Now that the computer was hopefully operable again, Alex pushed the tower’s power button. He sighed with relief when the lights winked on and the screen flickered to life. For what felt like the first time in his so short life, things were going well for him (Excluding the cryo-stasis and waking up to a Manhattan from the end-times). The computer had finally reached the login screen, into which Alex entered Ragland’s password and ID. He’d given it to him before he left to find the first contact location with the “insider”, who had actually been Cross. Remembering him made Alex pause for a moment. Admittedly, he felt remorseful, in particular because they never really got to know each other. Despite their hostile introduction, Alex had developed a strange soft spot for that hardass of a captain.
He shook his head and cleared his thoughts, returning to the computer. It was taking its sweet time, and Alex was about to give the tower a gentle tap with his foot, when the home screen finally showed up. In the lower right-hand corner was the time and date, reading 09:29 pm, 05/16/2010. Alex blinked in disbelief. 19 months since he was born on the floor of Penn Station, the 1st November 2008. He’d been gone for a long time.
“19 months...” shaken, Alex buried his face in his numb, trembling hands. His skin crawled with agitated tendrils as his mind came up with all manners of scenarios, none of them comforting. What had been his last memories before the vault? He remembered again; being captured by Blackwatch shortly after having reformed himself from the biomass puddle, what was left of him after the nuke. Since then about 19 months had flown by and god knows what happened in between. It certainly wasn’t good, taking New York’s look into consideration. He didn’t know where to start, so much was going on in his head.
“What the fuck am I supposed to do now?!” His voice echoed in the empty hallway. It was obvious, wasn’t it? Same thing as before. The only thing he’s ever known.. Hunt, kill, consume, and become even more of a monster. What’s gonna be left of me by the end of this?
He didn’t want to admit it, but it was inevitable. It was foolish to think he could be anything other than what he was made to be. A senseless killing-machine. The misery he caused himself and others wasn’t going to end anytime soon...
He sat still for a few minutes, trying but failing to blot out the tormented voices and screams in his head, which had swelled to a cacophonous choir. A knot was forming in his chest, and it was becoming increasingly difficult to breathe. The metal table beneath his fingers began to bend with each harrowing moment. Alex had to get out of the hospital. He was going to snap. Just when he got to his feet and turned, the barrel of a large handgun greeted him, poised to put a bullet between his eyes. The Blacklight entity snarled. Aggravated, Alex’ eyes traced along the shooter’s arm to look at their face. Even with a gas mask on, he would recognize those alert eyes anywhere. But now there was also a cold, calculating fury in them.
“Ragland?” Alex’ brow furrowed. Why was the Doc pointing a gun at him? ”What the hell are you doing? It’s me, Alex!”
“I know damn well who you are and what you’ve done, Mercer.” Ragland spat Alex’ name with undisguised reproach. Alex bared his inhumanly-sharp teeth at the accusation. What did he do?
“What are you talking about? I’ve been in some sort of Gentek freezer for 19 months, what the hell am I supposed to have done?”
“Don’t you dare play tricks on me. You’re not getting out of this alive, not with the bullets that are in this gun,” Ragland’s voice dropped to a threatening whisper “They should cure you.”
Alex was genuinely concerned for his well-being.
“Look, Ragland, whoever you think I am, whoever did that out there,” Alex clenched his jaw in frustration,
“It wasn’t me.”
Spoken through gritted teeth, his statement did nothing to dissuade the pathologist. Ragland eyed him suspiciously, but still not lowering the firearm. Alex was out of options. He couldn’t slap the pistol out of Ragland’s hand; he’d been wise enough to put distance between them. And if Alex made a move he’d have a quite possibly lethal bullet somewhere. He knew Ragland had studied him more than anybody else still alive, so it was no mistake to assume he had the means to create something lethal to the Virus. Which begged the question: how much had Gentek been able to study him? Alex was pulled out of his stupor when Ragland’s radio crackled.
“All units in the vicinity, Hades is engaging Zeus on the rooftop of Penn Station. Rendezvous for coordinated attack.”
So there is another me, Alex thought, confused at how this could have happened.
The look on Ragland’s face confirmed that he was equally bewildered by the announcement. Gradually, the situation became clear to the pathologist, and he curtly lowered the gun and switched the safety on.
Both men stood in the room, stunned. Save for the rasp of Ragland’s gas mask, it was pin-drop quiet. Until he took off his mask and finally spoke up.
“Well…This is the last thing I expected...” he trailed off, but quickly realising what Alex had said before. “You were in cryogenic storage? For 19 months?”
The Virus sighed with relief. “Yeah, I slept through whatever hell’s broken loose. I found out right before you came in,” Alex gestured at the computer behind him. “So, the fuck’s happened?”
Ragland shook his head slightly, baffled at the mess unfolding before his very eyes, “It had been a few weeks since the military completely pulled out of Manhattan, in January, when that other you came back, and...” Ragland trailed off, his voice going faint, “Alex, he infected New York. I don’t know why, but since then things have gone downhill, badly. Blackwatch and Gentek are worse than ever; Brooklyn’s become the Yellow Zone, Staten Island is Green, and...well, you can probably guess what Manhattan is...”
“Red.” Alex concluded. Great, the entirety of NY’s become a traffic light of scientific malpractices and shady government bioweapon programs. And apparently it was because of some imposter.
“So, what are you going to do?”
“Hm,” Alex mulled over his options; go face that bastard who had his name and meet this Hades person (no doubt another infected similar to him), or try to find Dana— “Wait, how’s Dana?” Ragland blinked, thrown off by the sudden change of topic. “She woke up a month after Blackwatch pulled out of Manhattan. She’s still in the red zone, hacking into Blackwatch and Gentek networks under the moniker ‘Athena’. I don’t think—Alex, are you alright?”
Alex huffed out a breath as he tried to suppress a grin. His sister was alive. Maybe not safe (who would be, in this city?), but alive and well. For a moment it occurred to him how odd it was to hide his emotions behind his jacket sleeve, and what elicited this human behaviour, but he quickly brushed the thought away. “Doc, you have no idea how good it is to hear that..”, Alex muttered, before looking up at the other. “Thank you.”
A rarity, Alex Mercer of all people being sincerely thankful, which Ragland grasped. “Glad I could help. I guess, at the bare bones, we’re all still fighting the same fight: put a stop to Gentek before one of their goddamn experiments puts a stop to the world as we know it.”
Alex couldn’t agree more. Which left one issue, that of the FAKE BITCHASS ZEUS malevolent copy. “Alright, I’ll see if i can’t go and join the rooftop-party at Penn Station and meet Hades.”
“Well then I suggest you change your appearance, because last time I checked, you two look identical.”
Alex frowned, almost pouting (he should be the one to keep this outfit, not that imposter), before his body melted apart into a sea of writhing tendrils. Even with limited biomass, he formed himself a tattered, faded-red trench coat over a beige sweater, with a new pair of boots instead of loafers. And lastly, with a heavy heart, he ditched the hood.
“Looking good, I’d say,” Ragland gave him a once-over, before nodding his approval. He patted Alex’s shoulder. “Now go kick his butt.”
Alex gave a raspy laugh. “With pleasure…”
With that, Mercer went on his way and left the wrecked hospital behind.
They say you are your own worst enemy. You look in the mirror and see yourself from your own perspective. What do you think? Do you have high hopes for yourself or are your expectations really low? Do you hate yourself with a passion or is your self-esteem as high as the skies above? You you bash yourself for everything you do? Do you say truths to yourself or do you say lies?
Now imagine the saying put into literal terms. A copy of you. Might be exact, might not be. But they are still you. Is this copy really your worst enemy? Or are they your very best friend?
In this situation...
The former is prominent.
NYZ: Red Zone
Gentek Building
Blaring sirens pierced the nightly air, as they always do in the Red Zone; in one place or another. A group of infected had started amassing behind the adjacent blocks and in the nearby streets, just out of sight. Not long after the infected horde began roiling over the Blackwatch defences on the perimeter, James Heller joined in. Now a lone scientist named Evan was cursing under his breath in the deeper floors of the Gentek building. The place was akin to the Parisian catacombs, in the way that it too featured an abundance of bones, with the odd organ or skin sample from infected; unfortunate individuals who were chosen to be test subjects for horrible experiments.
Shaky hands produced a set of keys from a lab-coat pocket, fumbling to get the one fitting the lock. Something was incarcerated in the room, which could only be described as a monster, an “It”. A copy of it was already loose in New York, it would certainly mean the end of the world if the other was also set free from its icy prison. This was increasingly becoming a possibility, especially once the radio of the scientist’s escort crackled.
“All units, this is Fortress 1! The main facility’s gate has been breached. Converge on the gate and engage incoming hostiles. Do not let them in!”
The scientist froze. The main gate had been breached? How?
“Get your ass moving, egghead!”, shouted the soldier from across the gloomy hallway.
Even more panicked than before, he finally managed to insert the key into the lock. With a turn, the mechanism sprang into motion, and a heavy blast door began sliding shut before the room’s prize. But just before it shut completely, the room went dark with a loud clang. The power had gone out.
“Oh no. Oh shit...”
With the equipment and ventilation whirring to a stop, Evan became painfully aware of the heavy footfalls of a small army of juggernauts stomping away on the ground level.
The soldier’s dying screams shook the scientist out of his transfixed state, sending him scooting to the wall. The sound of a wet crunch reverberated through the otherwise still corridor. Hesitant, Evan peeked around the corner to see what had become of his escort. He gasped at the sight of the dismembered soldier and the form of a monster. A large brawler was helping itself to the soldier’s gory remains. Unbeknownst to the scientist, his keys had slipped out of his pocket. The sound of jangling keys was enough to attract the beast’s attention. It was hungry for more.
Evan shuffled into a corner, hoping desperately that if he didn’t move it would pass him. The massive, horned head of a ravenous brawler burst through the doorway, snorting angrily. It sniffed once more before finding its prey.
Once the brawler was finished with its latest meal, it gave the wide room another look. A big door with a small but workable gap was the most prominent object for the brawler’s curiosity. Surely for prying open, perhaps there was more food behind? It approached, gave the door a good sniff and noticed that the air was slightly colder inside. With a satisfied snort, it began clawing at the gap, putting its hulking muscles to use. The door was strong, but against the power outage cutting short the closing process and the might of a gigantic brawler, it stood little chance. The brawler gave a triumphant roar once the blast door gave in. At the very end of the freezing vault was what the brawler considered its next meal. In a large metal tube connected to an even larger tank by various tubes dripping with thawing ice, lay something that looked like a man, though his features were obscured by the condensation on the glass. The brawler clamped down on the pod with its powerful jaws, tearing the hatch off its hinges. The next moment a clawed hand shredded through its throat, and the brawler’s life was cut short.
Zeus Containment Chamber
The hunter’s carcass slumped against the cryogenic storage tube, gargling with blood. Grasping feebly at the tube’s opening, Alex Mercer pulled himself out of his prison and collapsed on the linoleum floor. His hand, which he’d barely managed to shift into a usable weapon, retracted its claws, returning to its normal appearance. Now that the oversized hunter had ceased to live, the only thing audible were his heavy, shuddering breaths. Dazed, Alex shook his head to clear the fogginess. The worst thing wasn’t the stinging frostbite and still lingering numbness, but the disorientation. Where was he? And how long had he been in here? A pit formed in his stomach when he realized; what about Dana?
He gave the hunter another look, which is when he realized that the beast was no ordinary hunter. It was much more muscular, and its rugged facial features didn’t match the typical hunter either. At least you could tell that they were once humans. This thing looked like some mishap between an alligator and a pitbull.
What had happened after Blackwatch captured him?
Something was very wrong… Alex decided he had to investigate, getting to his feet and staggering towards the exit ahead.
He trudged through the hallway, coming across two mutilated bodies; a scientist and a soldier he assumed was Blackwatch, but wasn’t sure. The gear didn’t look like it used to.
He broke into what could have be taken for a run, hadn’t he been frozen. At least his body was loosening up already. After rounding some corners, he came across an elevator— his way outside.
After clambering half-way up the elevator shaft, he noticed the screeching of infected close-by. Great, at least there was food.
Once he reached the door for ground level, he launched himself off the shaft’s wall, crashing through.
“Oh fuck...”
What he found on the other side was a snapshot from Hell. Alex recognized the place now. He was at the Gentek HQ. However, the last time he was in the building’s foyer, the place wasn’t littered with corpses from soldiers and infected alike. An intense feeling of desperation rushed through him. What caused this? He had rendered the infected headless by killing Greene and her horrid pet. They should all be dead! Being limbered up again, Alex sprinted out the severely damaged front gate and into the night.
Outside
If the foyer had been a snapshot from Hell, then outside was the place itself. Fleshy, bloodred-glowing tendrils the size of multiple trucks, wound through streets and up the shattered glass and steel skeletons of skyscrapers, reaching into the night. Grotesquely-shaped shadows danced on every surface with the tendrils’ pulsing bioluminescence. The sight made Alex even more unsettled than he already was. He looked around in disbelief, half-expecting this to be nothing but a nightmare that would soon end. A Dream of Armageddon like it was back then in Times Square. But when he blinked, he did not wake up. He was already awake, and this awful world was real.
Some of the soldiers —including some blue-glowing D-Codes— were still alive and holding the perimeter against the stragglers, but Alex pointedly avoided them, staying shrouded in the limited light. He was mostly thawed, but didn’t want to test their strength just yet, considering his difficulty shaping just one hand into a claw.
Once out of eye shot, Alex dashed up the sheer face of a slightly leaning skyscraper. The putrid smell of the infected city hit him like a tank shell on his way up. He covered his mouth and nose with his right hand.
From the roof he could see across the burning expanse that had once been Manhattan, a city of some few million inhabitants. Now most of said inhabitants were either dead or reduced to screaming horrors that wandered the streets in search for a meal. Despite the terrifying view and its even worse implications, Alex’s mind kept going back to his sister, Dana. Technically he wasn’t her brother, but a viral copy of the late Alexander Mercer. Nonetheless, he considered Dana family. He had to find her. And maybe also figure out how long he had been put under. So he headed to the last place he’d seen her.
“Everyone, act natural!” Dana hissed under her breath.
People in the hideout were scrambling to find something to do or put themselves in a position that looked like they were casually doing nothing. Of course, in reality it was quite the opposite. It was the birthday of Manhattan’s monster, the virus himself. So to commemorate his first birthday, Dana had suggested to throw a small party, or at least give him a surprise. She’d prepared a small cake for him, not much considering it was already hard enough to find most of the ingredients for a fancy cake during the quarantine. But James had been so nice to grab some stuff from a supermarket on his way home from a mission in the Green Zone.
Now, Dana was jabbing away at her computer’s keyboard, Amaya scribbled on a piece of paper with some fairly short color pencils (she drew a lot), and the local genetics wizards (Karen and Ragland) were doing their best to discuss cures for any people infected by Blackwatch. James hovered over Dana as she typed away, acting as if he were getting information for another mission. Then, the door opened.
There stood Alex Mercer- Well, the Alex Mercer that was in stasis for nineteen whole months. He had gotten back from a mission, himself; mostly snooping on Blackwatch operations. A sighing grunt came out of his mouth as he closed the door behind him and lowered the bandanna around his mouth and chin.
“Alright. I’m back.”
Dana turned around to meet her pseudo-brother’s gaze. “That was quick,” she said.
Alex shrugged. “It was nothing too hard. I did find that they’re trying to breed a strain to create better super-soldiers. That we need to sabotage.”
“Right,” said Dana. “I’ll add that to the board.”
The virus looked around, taking note of the weird quietness in the room. It was strange. He could feel something was off but he couldn’t really put a finger on it. That was when he noticed a cabinet slightly open... Alex grew curious and opened it to find...
“What is this?” Alex took out the cake to show everyone.
Dana laughed nervously. “Yeeeaaaahhhh, I should’ve went for a better spot to put that.”
Amaya blurted out “SURPRISE!” as soon as Dana finished her sentence and jumped up with her hands in the air. Soon the whole room was wishing him a nice birthday. Alex raised an eyebrow before realizing what was going on. It was the birthday of the late Doctor Alexander Mercer, wasn’t it? Everyone still thinks he’s the dead guy, he guessed. Jupiter didn’t even blurt out the dirty truth? Well, Alex guessed it was a good thing... For now.
“Uh... Thanks.” He is still kinda weirded out by this whole birthday thing. Alex looked at the cake itself. It had white icing, the words “Happy birthday despite everything!” were written in red icing. Along the side, the same red icing was used to spell out “Sorry!” in nice cursive. Alex’s mouth smirked on the left side. Something within him cried out in happiness. Other parts were indifferent. And a small part didn’t care. But for Dana and the crew to do this for him? It actually felt nice... “I... Don’t know what to say...”
Dana approached the other, took the cake to place it on the table, and went back to Alex with her arms open. A gentle look was on her face, a soft smile forming. Alex took a few seconds to recognize the gesture before finally going in for a hug. He felt the warmth from Dana, both emotionally and physically. She really cares about him. This feeling... What was it? Family love? That... Fits.
The two look at each other for a few moments after pulling apart the hug.
“Do you want a piece?” Dana held her hands behind her back and swayed, waiting for a response.
Alex nodded. “Sure”
“Don’t use your claws this time. We already have enough broken tables.” Dana laughed before going to get a knife. Alex looked away in... Embarrassment, was it? Yeah, he still needs to learn how not to use his claws to cut small things.
It was just a minute after the final confrontation with Jupiter. Another after James Heller consumed him. And another after he killed off the infection. Three minutes? Who knew they would go by so fast? Zeus- Well, should he go by Alex now? He’s the only one left. He guessed so seeing as, well, there can only be one. Anyway, Alex was left wondering what to do now. Then he remembered something that his mind forgot during the battle.
“Dana!” he thought out loud.
“I don’t think she’d be happy to see you,” said James. “But he knew where she is.”
“Where?” The other motioned Alex to follow him and the two began to sprint across the buildings. Alex hoped to god that she was alright. If Jupiter knew about her, heinous things might have occurred. Alex let out an audible gulp.
Eventually the two found their way to a bank and, in turn, a large safe. James opened the safe with ease. Inside was nothing besides two people. James’ daughter, Amaya... And Dana. Alex kept his new appearance so that he didn’t frighten the both of them. Though, he did lower his mask...
“Dana... Thank god...” Alex started to run over but Dana shielded herself. This was familiar... Familiar to their first reunion 19 months ago. “I’m not gonna hurt you...” Those words came out of his mouth as instinct, just like the first time. Dana gazed upon the familiar face... But different clothing.
“You... Are you...?” She could barely say a word after the hour of anxiety. Alex looked at James and Amaya; their reunion... It was much similar. Amaya was afraid of James. Because he was just like him. Alex’s face filled with regret. He should’ve fought back when Blackwatch came for him all those months ago. Maybe he could’ve prevented all of this. But no, that blasted nuke had to fuck with his genetic coding and prevent him from using his old abilities beyond his claws.
“Did he do anything to you?” Alex asked. Dana could only remain silent until she muttered a few more words...
“Why would you do this?”
“He isn’t me!” Alex began to panic... Man, it was like the reunion with Ragland all over again. “I’m not him! I- He-...” Alex was close to feeling something that he’s never felt before... Sadness? Sad because even his sister refused to believe him? He guessed that’s why James said that earlier. “I... I’m not Jupiter...”
After a few moments of silence, Dana got up to follow James and Amaya, who were leaving the safe. Alex reached out for her and said her name once more, a hint of said sadness in his voice. He stood there as the three left before following them slowly. He wasn’t ready to give her up. Not yet.
Upon the roof of the bank were the four. Alex watched as Amaya eventually accepted James. Accepted that no matter what, he’s still her father. Alex then turned his focus to Dana, who was overlooking the ruined city. He was starting to accept the fact that even families break apart eventually. He looked down to the floor and started to walk away before discovering that his hand was being held. He looked behind him to notice who took his hand.
“Dana...?”
She looked at him with confusion and honesty. She looked like she wanted answers without being so forward about it. Alex understood her facial expression and took a few deep breaths to calm down his anxiety.
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