Swapped (part 9)
Merry Christmas and soon to be happy new year, I’m squeaking in one more update before the year is gone! Consider it a hobbit birthday present from me :) I’ve been waiting to share this chapter for a while, I hope you all enjoy!
Ao3 link
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Time woke up, and for eight rather enjoyable seconds, forgot he was a rabbit.
On the ninth, he twitched an ear that felt much too long, paused, and then grimaced, remembering his current fuzzy predicament. His hearing was still unusually sharp, and his body felt... wrong, just like it had when he’d been a kid and was still getting used to his powers. Something warm was pressed against his side, and Time groaned, twitching an ear as he pried his eye open.
Something green was stretched across him, and Time followed it up to where it was connected to a shoulder, and then a familiar face, freckles sticking out against too-pale skin.
“Hyrule?” Time asked, his mouth moving more slowly then he wanted it to. His son startled, them looked down at him, his expression turning relieved.
“Dad,” he sighed, and adjusted his hold on him. “I didn’t know if you were going to wake up.”
“Wake up? What... oh no,” Time said with a hiss of pain, remembering the rest of what had happened. “Hyrule, are you okay?”
“Just sore. I woke up first,” he explained, and absently held Time a little tighter. “Wild’s still out. Twilight must have made it away, he’s not in here with us.”
“That’s good,” Time sighed in relief, then nuzzled gently against Hyrule’s arm. “I’m sure he’ll find the others and come back.”
Hyrule nodded, running a shaky hand over Time’s fur, and Time let him while he looked around.
He and Hyrule were in what looked almost like a fish tank, walls made of a clear material, a thick door, barely enough room for Hyrule to stand up inside. Time could see Wild lying motionless in another one beside them, hair splayed across his face, and he swallowed. He couldn’t do anything about it right now though, so he turned his attention to the rest of the room.
It seemed like a much nicer version of the room they’d found the blupee in downstairs— equipment on some counters to the side, tiled floor. This room was much bigger though, and had some soft looking chairs in a corner next to a desk, with a carpet and quite a few bookshelves beside it. There was a huge window with something over it, and the only light came from a harsh white one above their heads. Time craned his neck and saw more glass cells behind them, and swallowed.
It looked like there was enough room for everyone they’d brought to be placed inside one.
“Do you know what that big thing is over there?” Hyrule asked after a moment, and Time looked to where he was pointing, a large, almost cartoonish-looking machine set near the window. It was a vaguely gun shaped sort of thing, with a panel on the side with lots of buttons and switches that seemed unnecessary. Time was reminded of a comic book Wind owned.
“I’d bet that’s what he used against us,” Time breathed, squinting to look closer. “Probably what switched our powers.”
“You think so?” Hyrule asked curiously. Time nodded.
“We’re in his... lab, or something like it. It would make sense if this was the main machine. It certainly looks like it could blow up a hallway,” Time observed.
Hyrule sighed and held him tight. “It does.”
Time lightly brushed his head against Hyrule’s arm, then settled in to think. How were they going to get out of this? He himself was pretty much useless at the moment, and while he was sure the others would come, getting out themselves would make things easier and eliminate some danger. He’d have to rely on the other powers they had right now.
“Hyrule, could you freeze this glass like you did the cage downstairs?” Time asked, and his son shook his head.
“I already tried. It didn’t work. He must have weather-proofed it or something.”
“Or perhaps he made this one specifically for whoever had the ice powers,” Time said thoughtfully. He sighed. “Well, perhaps we could—”
“Grilled cheese!” Wild suddenly yelled, sitting up so fast he banged his head on the glass. Time and Hyrule both jumped. “Don’t let the soup—! Ow. Uh.”
Wild rubbed his forehead and looked around with a squinty look, pushing some hair out of his face.
“Oh. Hey,” he said when he spotted Hyrule, and gave a little wave. “I had this weird dream where we all had the wrong powers and Dad was a bunny and we were shot with these little darts—”
Time raised his head so Wild could see him, and Wild blinked, then groaned.
“Aw man, it was real?”
“Unfortunately, yes,” Time said, and Wild grumbled.
“Why couldn’t the part with the sandwich have been the real part?” he said huffily. “I’m starved.”
“We’ll eat when we get home,” Time reassured, and Wild’s nonchalance faded, his face worried as he looked around at their predicament.
“If we get home,” he said quietly.
Hyrule abruptly stiffened.
“I’m not staying here,” he said in a sharp voice, grip tightening around Time. “I’m not letting him do anything to me, he can’t have any of my powers, he can’t.”
Time could feel his breath speed up, and he looked up at him, noting how stiff Hyrule looked. There was an odd light in his eyes too, and Time breathed out, realizing what the expression meant.
They were being kept somewhere and unable to leave because of their powers. The scientist only wanted to exploit them, and keep them for the sole use of what they could do for him.
A situation similar to what Hyrule had run into several times before in his life.
Oh Hyrule.
“We’ll get out of here,” he said in a reassuring voice, patting Hyrule with a paw. “I promise.”
Hyrule just held him tighter.
A door suddenly clicked, and they went quiet, waiting to see what would happen. It swung open, footsteps tapping, and Time saw nice shoes before he saw anything else. Hyrule adjusted his grip, and Time could suddenly see the rest of the man who walked in.
Middle-aged and dressed in a stereotypical lab coat, he had a thin but surprisingly pleasant face— one that Time thought looked familiar. He didn’t have time to think about it though, as the man came forward and looked at them all, a pleased expression crinkling the corners of his eyes.
“You’re the guy who’s behind all this!” Wild yelled before he could say anything, and the man turned him with an amused look.
“Indeed, this is my work. How do you do?” he asked pleasantly.
“Fix our powers you jerk!” Wild snapped, and the scientist tsked, wagging a finger at him.
“Relax boy, this was only a test. And that’s no way to speak to your elders.”
“Then I’ll say it: fix our powers,” Time demanded, and it would have been quite menacing but for the fact that he was still a rather small rabbit.
“Ahh the Fierce Deity,” the scientist chuckled, adjusting the goggles resting atop his head. He peered down at Time, and Hyrule stiffened. “I find it curious you ended up with the lagomorphic ability rather than something equally powerful to your own skills. Perhaps that imbalance was what drew them to you though, hmm...”
He mumbled something to himself, then took out a notepad and scribbled something down.
“Yes, I’ll have to test that,” he hummed, clicking his pen. “But for now, you’re simply under observation. Fear not Champion, I’ll replace your powers when I’m finished with my tests.”
“And how long will that take?” Wild asked in the same sharp voice.
“Only a few months,” the scientist said with a smile. “Maybe a year, but only if the data I gather proves insufficient.”
Time’s eyes widened, and Hyrule’s breath hitched. Wild looked momentarily stunned, then he resumed his glare at the man.
“You can’t keep us here for a year!” he snapped, kicking at the wall of his cage. “I have library books due next week!”
“I can and I will,” the scientist said in a matter-of-fact voice. “And I never said I was going to let you out after that. Think of this as more of a... permanent position.”
“You cannot kidnap and imprison children,” Time spat, and the scientist raised an eyebrow.
“But you can bring them into battle? Pot kettle black, Fierce Deity. I recall there was an incident in the news a few weeks ago where Hurricane was nearly killed, and based on his height, he can’t be older than fifteen. I would say they’re all far safer in here, wouldn’t you agree?”
Time stayed silent.
The scientist smiled. “That’s what I thought. I think you’ll come to understand in your time here that this is truly what’s best for everyone.”
Wild stuck out his tongue at him.
The scientist merely gave him that same warm smile that sent chills through Time’s fur and made Hyrule stiffen, and Time tried to figure out why he seemed so familiar. Had he met him somewhere? Had he crossed paths with him as a civilian?
“Who are you?” Time asked, and the man smiled at him.
“My name is Doctor Mizumi. It’s a pleasure to have you all here,” he said with a small bow, and Time startled at the name.
“Mizumi?”
He’d known a scientist back in the day who’d gone by that name, but he was an old man, and a chemist, one that specialized in marine research. Not... superpowers and cloning.
“Ah. I see you must have known of my dear father,” the scientist said, voice flat. “Knew him, perhaps. Unsurprising he never mentioned you. He was a true genius, but entirely squandered his talent on silly water projects.”
“His advances saved lives!” Time said in disbelief. “His involvement with fixing the Great Bay disaster was invaluable, do you have so little respect for that? For your father?”
“He wasted his time with water droplets and algae. He could have been doing amazing things, world-changing things, but chose to squander his life in a hut by the bay. I am twice the man he ever was,” the scientist said coldly. “And soon everyone will know it.”
He breathed in and then out, his expression smoothing as he seemed to calm himself.
“You three and the rest of your team will be part of things you can’t imagine,” Dr. Mizumi said finally, looking at them. “I’ll solve mysteries nobody has ever solved, discover advances unheard of. It will be glorious, and if you survive, I’m sure you’ll appreciate the results.”
Hyrule and Wild exchanged alarmed looks, and Time stood up as much as he could, catching the scientist’s eye. He’d heard enough.
“I have a deal for you,” he spoke, trying to keep the squeak his voice held away.
“You’re not really in a position to bargain,” Dr. Mizumi observed.
“I am with this. Let them go, and I’ll willingly stay,” Time said simply, gesturing at himself. Hyrule and Wild looked at him incredulously, but Time didn’t falter. “I won’t try to escape. I won’t fight you. I’ll be your... subject as long as you like. Just so long as you let them go free.”
Dr. Mizumi briefly considered. “Tempting. But I’m afraid I’d rather have five unwilling subjects then a single willing one,” he said with a shrug. “If I’m to properly study powers, I need multiple cases in order to get conclusive results.”
Wild frowned. “Wait, don’t you mean three subjects?”
Dr. Mizumi smiled. “No, I meant five.”
The door he’d come through opened again, and some of the guards they’d seen earlier walked in, dragging something behind them. Time’s breath left him when he saw red hair, and Hyrule sucked in a gasp.
It was Malon and Artemis, unmoving.
“What did you do to them?!” Wild shouted with an equally enraged and frightened look, and the scientist waved a calming hand.
“Good heavens, relax, Champion. It’s only sleeping gas. I couldn’t have them leaving once I finished my first test with them, that’s all,” he assured. “They’ll wake up in a few minutes.”
Time wasn’t convinced of that, seeing as there were spots of blood on both Malon and Artemis. But he knew yelling about it wouldn’t help right now while they were trapped. And it would likely just make his kids more worried.
So he remained silent as the guards put the women each in different glass cells, Malon next to Wild, Artemis more near Time and Hyrule. Wild looked at his mother with a frightened look, but since Time couldn’t see her very well, he gave Artemis a quick scan.
She seemed okay, though there was a little blood by her temple, and she seemed pale. It might have been because of the lighting, but Time couldn’t tell. She was also missing a glove for some reason too, but overall looked... okay.
Time hoped Malon was the same.
“It’s a disappointment I only got these two, but that won’t be the case for long,” Dr. Mizumi said in a satisfied voice as he looked at them all, lingering on each of them for a few seconds. “Since the rest of your group should be arriving... now.”
Something beeped on the doctor’s wrist as he spoke, and he looked at the large door, the guards standing ready.
Time tensed, and felt Hyrule do the same, but the door didn’t move. A few silent moments went by, even Wild keeping quiet, and Dr. Mizumi glanced at them, then at the doors to his lab, and let out a tsking noise.
“Your teammates are late,” he said in a disapproving voice. “I gave them a rather generous amount of time to show up, and yet they seem not to have grasped the scope of this situation. I warned them of the consequences... and yet here we are.”
He motioned to the guards, then Time’s heart froze as he pointed at Wild.
“Bring him, please.”
“What?! Hey hey, wait, let’s not be hasty,” Wild blurted out, shrinking back in his cell as the guards approached. “Why don’t we wait a little longer? It’s only been a bit, right? Maybe just give them another minute? There’s a lot of stairs in this place!”
The guards paused and looked at their boss, but the scientist waved them on. “I said not to be late. If they won’t listen to me, I’m sure they’ll listen to one of you,” he said mildly. “Especially if I show them I wasn’t kidding about a penalty.”
“Take me instead!” Time shouted, but the scientist and guards ignored him, Wild getting dragged out of his tiny cell despite his frantic struggling.
Hyrule held Time in an almost bruising hold as Wild was dragged out, Time’s heart in his throat as he watched him get strapped to a table. Wild gave his father a panicked look, and Time tried to look reassuring, even though inwardly he was screaming. If he’d had even a flicker of his normal powers, he could have Wild out of there in seconds.
But all he could do now was watch.
Once Wild was strapped down, the guards moved, and Dr. Mizumi actually removed the straps on his left wrist, though the freedom wasn’t enough for Wild to do anything. He pulled off Wild’s glove, setting it aside, then drew out a long knife.
Hyrule’s fingers tightened in Time’s fur.
Dr. Mizumi stretched out Wild’s bare arm, teasing the knife along his wrist. Wild tried to stay still, but he couldn’t help his flinch, and Time growled.
“Now. I’m a kind man, and I’m willing to be gracious with you all,” he said, like he wasn’t actively threatening a teenager. “If you can convince the rest your group to get up here and willingly give themselves up, I won’t touch a hair on the boy’s head.”
“And if not?” Time asked slowly.
He shrugged. “He doesn’t need both his hands.”
Wild paled, and Dr. Mizumi looked right at Time.
“Up to you, Fierce Deity. I’ll give you thirty seconds.”
“Wouldn’t he make a better subject if he was intact?” Hyrule spoke up in an emotionless voice, and the scientist shrugged.
“One hand won’t do much. Besides, I’ve been wanting to test how fast a super heals compared to an average human. There are easier ways certainly, but this wouldn’t be a bad test of it.”
He pressed the knife against Wild’s skin, and Time heard his son quickly muffle a whimper.
“Clock is ticking.”
“Don’t do it,” Wild said in a small voice, and Time looked at his son.
Wild was pale, and his expression frightened, but he gave Time a pleading look, shaky determination in his eyes. He was willing to suffer, just to keep the others safe and increase their chances of escaping from here, even though there was already a thin line of blood marring his skin.
Time... Time couldn’t let him do that.
This was an immediate danger, and though Time certainly didn’t want the others to give themselves up, he couldn’t see a way out of the current issue that didn’t involve Wild losing a limb. And he couldn’t let that happen. Wouldn’t. He’d rather lose his own hand then watch his son have his removed.
Something flickered beside Wild.
Time blinked, not certain what it was he’d seen at first, but then it flickered again, and he saw a colorful suit and a finger held to lips, silently begging him to keep quiet.
Four.
Hope swelled in Time’s chest, and Four gave him a tiny, stressed smile before disappearing again. There had been blood on his face, but he otherwise looked okay, and Time tried to stay calm. He must have gotten Artemis’s powers of intangibility, and so long as he could control it, that meant he could easily hide himself from view.
Hyrule must have seen Four as well, since Time felt him start a bit in surprise, but he stayed still, his face remaining a blank sort of worried. Wild was focused on the knife on his wrist, but it was probably better he hadn’t seen Four— with the scientist right there, it would be safer if Four waited to show himself to Wild.
“Time’s up,” Dr. Mizumi said, startling Time from his thoughts. “Tell them to surrender, or I start cutting.”
“Okay, okay,” Time assured, thoughts and terrible half-formed plans rapidly running through his head. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Artemis and Malon begin to stir, and felt his worry mix sickeningly with hope. “You know they might not listen, though.”
“Oh I think they will,” Dr. Mizumi smiled. “Hearing it from you, they’ll know what’s at stake.”
“Fierce Deity,” Wild said quietly, but Time didn’t look at him, knowing the less attention on him and Four the better.
“Give me the microphone,” Time said, and Wild sighed with a mix of relief worry frustration in his voice. But he had to buy time, and this was the best way to do it, and also keep Wild from getting hurt.
Dr. Mizumi smiled. “Wonderful.”
He drew the knife back, though Wild remained strapped to the table. Time could see Four hiding underneath, fiddling with something, and the scientist picked up a device like what you’d used to speak over an intercom. He stepped over to where Time and Hyrule were trapped, and opened a small hole in the wall, passing it through.
“Speak through that, and tell them to surrender,” he said as he stepped back, and Time scowled, Hyrule picking up the device for him since he couldn’t himself. “And no funny business.”
“I wouldn’t dream of it,” Time said flatly. “Do I give them time to get up here in case they’re across the building?”
“It’s your job to convince them that this is time sensitive,” Dr. Mizumi said with a smirk, still holding the knife. He gestured for Time to speak. “Go on. You know what will happen if you aren’t convincing enough.”
Hyrule pushed the button, and Time sighed.
“Boys,” Time began, not entirely sure what to say. He needed to stall for time, but not let the scientist in on what he was doing. “We’re in... a bit of a predicament, at the moment.”
Four had begun to remove the straps on Wild’s right side, and Wild jumped when he felt the movement. His eyes widened, and Time quickly resumed his message.
“It has to do with the previous announcement I’m sure you heard. We’re okay, we just don’t really... have a choice here. You... you all had better come to the top floor.”
“Unarmed and ready to surrender,” the scientist reminded, and Time scowled at him.
“Unarmed and ready to surrender,” he bit out, not hiding the displeasure in his voice. Four had finished with Wild’s right side, and was now attempting to work on the left without being seen. “And... you’d better hurry. He wasn’t kidding about the threats.”
“That should do for now,” the scientist said in a pleased voice. “Thank you very much, Fierce Deity.”
Four only had one strap left.
Time smirked at the scientist, and lightly tapped Hyrule with his back paw to warn him.
“Actually, I was kidding about the surrendering part, but you’ll probably want to get up here anyway,” he said into the microphone, and as Dr. Mizumi’s face turned angered, Four removed the last of Wild’s bonds.
Wild immediately lunged for the scientist with a shout, and the guards ran for him as Dr. Mizumi yelped and quickly backpedaled. Four reappeared and ran for where Time and Hyrule were trapped, and hurriedly began to unlock the door while Wild wreaked havoc.
“Good job Prism,” Time said in a proud voice, and Four gave him and Hyrule a shaky grin, opening the door and squeezing Hyrule’s arm.
“It wasn’t easy. Let’s go!”
The scientist had scrambled back from Wild with no noticeable injury, standing in front of the machine Time had noticed earlier, and Wild was now trying to fight past several guards in order to get to him again. Malon and Artemis weren’t fully awake yet, and Time quickly decided Dr. Mizumi was their current priority.
Especially since he was messing with something on his wrist, probably calling more guards.
Time told Four and Hyrule as much, and they went to help Wild get past the doctor. But first, Time tugged on Hyrule’s arm, and asked him to put him down.
“You sure?” Hyrule said worriedly, and Time nodded.
“I’m sure.”
Hyrule nodded and ducked down, letting Time hop from his arms. Time landed on the ground with a small thump, and then as Hyrule ran off, focused on the tingly feeling of invisibility.
It took longer than he liked, but it finally spread over him like a full-body shiver, and once Time was certain he couldn’t be seen, he charged for the scientist. He was able to slip right through the fight because of his size, though it was hard to dodge all the legs in his way.
Hyrule’s ice began to join the mix and running became even harder, but Time managed to make it through without being stepped on. He caught his breath for just a moment, then climbed up onto a series of small shelves by the wall, close to the scientist.
Then he leapt at Dr. Mizumi with a squeaky screech.
Dr. Mizumi nearly fell over as the invisible rabbit hit his face, yelling from the unexpected strike. Time battered him with his back legs, using his short claws and legs and anything else he could to try and knock him down. If they could subdue him, then they could get him to tell them how the machine worked and finally get their powers back.
Hands snatched at Time, and he yelped as Dr. Mizumi dragged him off his face, several bleeding scratches trailing across his nose.
His expression was furious, and the sudden grab had startled Time into visibility again. He attempted to bite his hand, but Dr. Mizumi saw it coming, and managed to avoid it.
“That’s enough!” Dr. Mizumi shouted over the din of the fighting and held Time up by the ears.
His boys all froze, eyes going wide, and the scientist breathed in a harsh breath.
“Get in the holding cells,” he said harshly, grabbing his knife again and holding it to Time’s neck.
“You said you wanted us alive,” Wild said in a voice that shook with anger and fear.
“If killing one of you is what it takes to make the rest behave, then I will do it,” Dr. Mizumi said coldly. “This has gone far enough and I am out of patience. Get moving.”
Time swallowed, and saw Malon sitting up in her cell, looking at him with a shocked expression. He tried to give her a reassuring look, but it was hard to do that when you were a little rabbit being held by the ears with a knife at your throat.
Wild and Hyrule began inching backwards when Dr. Mizumi pressed the knife more tightly against Time, but Four stood his ground, glaring.
“Why are you such a jerk?” he said, voice holding a quiet anger. “No wonder Shadow ran away from you.”
“Cloning is an imperfect process at the moment,” Dr. Mizumi said with an eye roll. “Obviously his volatile emotions stemmed from that. Next time I’ll be sure to stabilize that particular quirk.”
“Next—?! No more clones!” Four snapped with an enraged look. “You made Shadow suffer enough.”
“Wait wait, this guy made Shadow?” Wild said in disbelief, and Dr. Mizumi glared at him.
“Why did you even make him? And why does he look like me?” Four demanded.
Dr. Mizumi huffed, and adjusted his grip on Time’s ears. Time’s head was starting to hurt. “I’ll explain everything if you get in your cell.”
“I’m not going until I get an explanation,” Four snapped back, and Dr. Mizumi hissed out a displeased breath.
“...I suppose I may as well explain my genius now,” he said finally. “About... hm, it’s probably been twenty years now... a sample of DNA came into my possession, at a hefty price. The ah, donor wasn’t specified, but after some tests and investigation, I figured out a pool of possibilities. You, my good sir,” Dr. Mizumi said as he gave Time a shake, “were at the top.”
Ice shot through Time’s veins, but he fought to keep his feelings off his face.
How could he have..?
—Wait. Twenty years ago...
That would’ve been right around Majora.
Malon paled, obviously recognizing the significance of the number as well.
“This still doesn’t explain why you made him,” Time managed to get out, and the scientist shrugged.
“Scientific pursuits, my friend. Superpowers are horribly understudied in the scientific world thanks to the ban, and I needed a subject I could test at my own leisure. I wanted to see if I could replicate your powers, but I got something else entirely, and decided to go with it. Trying to figure out if genetics could be tweaked to affect powers, and possibilities of granting powers to those that weren’t born with them has been thrilling, the field is fascinating—”
Wild, leapt at him, his face furious.
He must have forgotten he didn’t have his speed though, because the moment he moved, one of the guards that had been standing at the ready grabbed him, and threw him to the ground.
The rest took that as their cue to move, and in short order Four and Hyrule had been grabbed as well.
“Let them go!” Malon shouted from in her cell, hair blowing around her face, and Dr. Mizumi smiled.
“Ah, good of you two to join us,” he said as Artemis also sat up. He seemed a bit calmer now, and his grip on the knife had loosened. “As I was saying. It took me years to perfect my technique for the clone, and several failures... but I finally made a breakthrough several years ago. And the project was a result of that.”
“His name is Shadow!” Four shouted furiously, and Dr. Mizumi snorted as Wild and Hyrule were wrestled back into their cells, Four struggling viciously against having the same happen to him.
“Titles of that sort are meaningless. He was never meant to last very long. He’d survived longer than anything else certainly, but it’s obvious his powers were unstable, I expected to have to create another one. Why are you so attached to him? It’s just DNA.”
The others looked furious, but Time mostly felt dizzy himself, trying to come to terms with everything he’d just heard.
He got my DNA from Majora, he cloned me enough that he looks like Four, Four who everyone says looks like me, Shadow...
“I assume you’re related to Deity,” Dr. Mizumi said to Four, looking between them. “Which would be why the clone looks like you. You both have the Fierce Deity’s DNA. Obviously the traits showed themselves in a similar way, which is a truly fascinating result. You two are going to be first up on my list of experiments,” he said with a smile at Four and Time.
Four’s face screwed up, but then the door opened.
“Ah, finally,” Dr. Mizumi grinned, and Time’s stomach sank as Warriors, Twilight, Wind and Legend were all muscled into the room by several more guards.
Time quickly looked over them all, noting the state of everyone, and zeroing in on Legend especially. He looked like he was only standing because a guard was holding him up, his eyes red and cheeks damp, and worry pounded in Time’s heart.
He made eye contact with Warriors, who slowly blinked at him in a meaningful way. A bit of relief settled over him.
Ah, a plan. Good.
“Did anyone lose limbs?” Wind said frantically as he was dragged in, and Wild growled from his cell.
“No. Deity’s in trouble though.”
Wind’s mouth clicked shut as he saw Time being held by the ears with a knife at his throat, though Time didn’t miss the brief flicker of amusement in his eyes.
Yes, ha ha, I’m a rabbit. Thank you, Wind.
He was sure there’d be plenty of teasing later.
...If they made it out of here.
“Yes, a touching reunion, wonderful. Cells please,” Dr. Mizumi said with a wave of his hand. “I have more permanent rooming for you all of course, but I need to get some baseline vitals, and see how your new powers are effecting your bodies—”
Four disappeared.
The guard that had been holding him yelped, and before anyone else could do anything, Four suddenly reappeared in front of Time, elbowing the scientist away from him.
Dr. Mizumi dropped Time with a shout, guards swarming forward, and Time hit the ground running, not even sure what he needed to do. He just knew he needed to run.
Instinct took over and he bolted, scrambling out of the way of a guard, feeling bits of himself go invisible as he zigzagged across the floor. Four shouted, and Time glanced back to see Dr. Mizumi pull a gun out from underneath his coat.
Someone else yelled, movement rippled throughout the room, and the scientist aimed the weapon right at Time.
His hand was surprisingly steady, and Time knew with a dreadful certainty that the shot would hit him even as he tried to jump out of the way, twisting himself in the air—
A wolf lunged forward and snatched him out of the way right as the gun went off.
