2022-02-13 08:21:49“Sir, exactly why are we here again?” Chris was unable to stop his voice from trembling as they were descending into the lowest floor of the underground base.
“You’ll find out soldier,” the man wearing the white lab coat just said before remaining silent again.
The sound of the whirring mechanism of the elevator and the man’s sudden quietness just made it even more terrifying for him, remembering what it meant to be on those lower floors.
He literally jerked from the shock when the door finally opened, they were greeted by the sounds of hissing, ambers jumping from the metals being welded, the smell of alcohol, and the metallic smell.Soldiers were passing by one after another in haste, some were carrying weapons, others were pushing huge cages, along with them were scientists in white coats running around with their clipboards or tablets, discussing some things with one another in panic.
“Is this a new floor?” Chris asks seeing the floor number on the ground.
He did not remember being in a much lower area before, even though they had already put him in the lowest part of the underground lab.
“Do keep up,” the man just answered, still keeping his lips shut.
That didn’t bode well for Chris, knowing what it could possibly mean one thing for him. It just made him even more nervous now that they were entering a sterile room with white automatic sliding doors on the side. They entered a long small straight square pathway, filled with white tube lights on each side. It kept going down, passing several more cross-like sliding doors, that were made of thick and hard metal, until they reached a cross pathway with other people.
“Dr. Steinz, I’ve brought him,” the man in a white lab coat states as he approached the two older men.
Chris froze in his place seeing the bearded man again who had whiting hair. He could not remove the memory that was etched in his mind of the man’s wrinkled face as he was smiling behind a mirror, all the while, those things were being done to him.
“Ah, well, if it isn’t our anomaly of a power user,” the man says with his deep hoarse voice as they turned to them.
Chris though his knees were shaking still tried to keep his posture firm as he stood in attention in front of the two, he still wanted to properly act as a soldier in front of them.
“Dr. Steinz, have you forgotten the main reason why we’re here, we are finally going to be able to find out what his ability is,” the other old man with a balding head interrupted as he cackled.
Dr. Steinz quickly let out a suppressed laugh. “Ah, yes, yes, Dr. Gomez. Has everything been prepared already?” the old man states as he turned to his colleague.
“Yes,” Dr. Gomez quickly says nodding as he put on his glasses and pressed something on his tablet.
“Then we should be able to start.” Dr. Steinz smiled as he also began pressing some things on his tablet.
There were several beeping sounds from the said device as the old man kept pressing several more things in his device.
“Arthur, please prepare our subject for the test, we will be conducting the experiment once he’s ready,” Dr. Gomez turns to the young man that had brought Chris.
“Yes Doctor,” Arthur nodded before looking at Chris.
The young man gives Chris a quick tap as he was still staring at the two old men who were discussing some things in hushed tones as they showed one another’s research that was on the device’s screen.
Startled, Chris quickly moves to follow the young man as he was signaling him with his head to follow.
They moved to the right side of the pathway while the scientists took the one on the left. The young man took him to the very end of the hall, he was then led to a small sterile room that had white tiles, it had an operating bed inside with a showerhead on the far end.
“Please take off all your clothes and sterilize yourself,” Arthur said with a cold and straight tone pointing at the shower.
Chris just nodded knowing what was about to come, he waited for the man to go out of the room before he started taking off his clothes, before proceeding to clean himself up.
Though the water was warm he could not help but continue to tremble as he was already expecting what was about to happen to him. He tried to mentally prepare his mind but remembering all those things that they had done before just made him shake even more.
There was a clean white medical robe that was prepared for him on the operating table which he wore. He then sat on the table, waiting for the inevitable as he kept taking deep breaths, trying to mentally prepare himself for the worse.
It didn’t take long before a man finally came for him, wearing a white hazmat suit with some kind of device that kept ticking.
“Please come with me,” Arthurs radio-like voice came out from the nozzle of the suit, his hand gesturing him to follow.
Chris quickly complied without a word, he remained quiet continuing to prepare himself, trying not to show any kind of fear or feeling with his straight face while following the young man.
They return to the cross pathway but this time they immediately made a turn and went to the middle hall which continued to go in a downward slope. He wasn’t sure how far it went but it did take them some time to finally reach the end of it which was also a metal slide cross door, same as the ones before but required security access.
Arthur slid his key card into it before pressing the numerical codes, it wasn’t that hard for him to see what it was after making quick glances at what the man was doing.
Three doors opened individually in a timed manner, Chris noticed that these ones were much thicker than the ones they had passed above, which made him very curious as to what was inside.
“Please go in,” Arthur raises his hands to point him in that direction.
Swallowing hard he complies once more, though he was hesitant he knew he would not be able to oppose those in power.
He got into a bigger room with a huge vault-like door. It was locked with this gear-like mechanism and was obviously very secured and thick.
Chris almost jumped when the door behind him closed, he then quickly returned his gaze to the large one in front of him that started making loud clanking sounds as its gears started turning.
His insides felt like they were full of spiders running around as they would not stop vibrating because of terror. He was welcomed by this ominous darkness which just fueled his fear even more.
“Subject two o two, please step inside,” echoed a vibrating and radio-like voice that seemed to come from Dr. Gomez.
Hearing that, Chris immediately obeyed walking into the void, it was only then that he felt the whole floor was of cold freezing metal. It took him some time to finally get inside as he was unable to properly move from the trembling of his knees.
A loud boom was heard as the spotlights started turning on one by one, illuminating the whole place. He looked around to see that the was inside a large dome-like arena with only a dark glass window for observation in the middle of it.
There were three other doors inside, it looked the same as the one behind him, one was in front of him the other two were on his left and right.Chris hugged himself as he heard the large door behind him start to close, its sound resonated throughout the whole place as it slowly locked.
“All right, we will now proceed with the test,” Dr. Gomez's voice echoed.
With that the door in front of him began clanking as its gears started to turn, a loud whirring sound then started to come out of it as it slowly opened.
Chris's heart started racing as he suddenly felt his skin crawl, sensing a familiar feeling coming from behind the door.
“Feed us, oh queen, feed us,” the voice echoed in his mind along with a loud growling sound.
A few more seconds and the full form of the beast walks right into the arena, moving in what seemed to be a crouching-like manner, like a predatory cat preparing to pounce on its prey.
Though terrified, Chris could not help from frowning as he saw how different this wolf-like beast was. His scale-like skin was almost deteriorating from burned marks, the horns that protruded from its body were full of cracks and it was chained to what seemed to be a thick metallic collar.
“Dr. what is this!” He tried calling out to the people that were looking into the mirror a few feet above the arena, seeing as the creature continued to move towards him.
“Do not worry officer Cruz, we can assure you this is a completely safe and controlled experiment,” Dr. Gomze’s static-like voice echoed thought out the dome.
Chris unable to believe that just remained where he is until finally, the chains reached their limit. The beast was halfway to the arena and was still trying to pull the restraint to get to him.
All that time he could hear the beast stone, metallic voice in his head. “Hungry must find food, I don’t want to die, queen.” It kept repeating over and over again that it was starting to make his head throb.
“Officer Cruz, please move closer to the specimen,” Dr. Steinz's voice now echoed through the speakers.
“Dr.?” He almost howled in disbelief at what the man wanted him to do.
“Move closer to the specimen, officer Cruz,” Dr. Steinz repeated this time with more firmness and authority.
Chris clenched his fist, gritting his teeth as he followed the orders, he hated what the man was making him do, not caring for his safety nor his consent. Deep down in his mind, he kept thinking that there will be a time that these people will get what was coming to them.
Being careful, Chris made sure that he was close enough to the beast but far enough for its claws to reach him just to be safe.
“Closer officer Cruz,” Dr. Steinz's voice grew louder on the speakers.
Chris's face crumpled as he tried to contain himself, yet in the end, he took in a deep breath and took it all in. He thought that if he was going to meet his end there he will curse the doctor until his death.
“Queen,” the sound was much more solid, clear with a deep tone of a growly voice, but this time it was as if the sound came directly from the beast and was much calmer.
The creature then suddenly knelt down and laid in front of him like a submissive and behave little pup.
“Officer, how are you doing this?” It was Dr. Gomez again, the tone of his voice was a mix of surprise, happiness, and amazement.
“I don’t know,” He shouts back, even he did not understand why the beast was acting this way.
“Officer, we want you to touch it,” Dr. Steinz took over once more his voice was icy cold.
“What!” He could not help but shriek for what they wanted him to do.
Looking at the creature who was almost double his size, it could basically snap him in two, once it decides to bite him.
“Touch the specimen’s head,” Dr. Steinz ordered once more with a sharper tone.
Enraged by the unbelievable and dangerous request he non-hesitantly moved, stomping his feet and glaring at the glass window when he pressed his hand on the creature's head.
His face quickly changed as surprise suddenly was etched on his face upon feeling the fur-like texture of the beast. It also remained calm and began breathing in a relaxed manner as it slowly dozed off.
Several images came back within Chris’s mind as he was able to look at the creature much cleared, it was the same one that he saw within the ashen mist incident, the only difference was its body was burned out and wounded.
“Proceeding with experiment,” Dr. Steinz's voice echoed through the dome together with the sounds of clanking as the two other doors on his left and right side began opening too.
Two more creatures came out, but this time they had a different form and color than the ones that he was holding unto.
His eyes literally grew wide when the two beasts did not even move cautiously but instead immediately dashed towards him, mouth open, showing their fangs that were ready for an attack.
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The Matriarch Chapter 9 Cleared
Chris was still trembling as he stared blankly in front of him, the beam of light continued to move from one of his eyes to the other as hands kept pressing his lids to keep them open. Though he remained perfectly still and unresponsive due to the shock, he was still able to hear the argument and debate that was happening within the room as their voices boomed inside the tightly sealed tiled room.“Why did they react that way, they were of the same species,” Dr. Steinz grumbled as he continued to flipping from one page of the paper on his clipboard to another.“Maybe it's his affinity to the beast.” Dr. Gomez rubbed his chin as he continued to view his tablet, the sounds of beast screaming could be heard from it as the man kept replaying the video of the whole procedure that was done.“You think it has something to do with his wavelength?” Dr. Steinz then looked upon something on his d
The Matriarch Chapter 10 Group test
Several men had wide grins on their faces as they looked at Chris, making him very uncomfortable. Though he was remaining quiet at one side.“Sir Chris, Sir Chris!” A familiar jolly sound echoed through his ears making him lookup.He could not help but smile seeing the young man who was running towards him right now, though all of a sudden he felt worried realizing what was happening.“Private Oliver, what are you doing here?” He greeted.He somehow felt relieved finally having someone that he knows in that place, it made the uncomfortable stares much bearable and less noticeable. The young man seem
The Matriarch Chapter 11 Back up
“Your commanding officer seems to be quite the reliable man.” Chris could not remove his eyes from the man who was in charge of them.With every order that he makes and every word he says, every soldier in their platoon seems to respect and follow without any hesitations.They were currently jogging along the wide, concrete pathway that seemed to stretch out further, having only dim tunnel lights that were so far apart from each other, making it hard to see what was in front of them.“Who, the sergeant, sir?” Oliver asks with a smile, as he did not understand much of the question, being busy with breathing to keep up with the group.“
The Matriarch Chapter 12 The others
Several of the other soldiers move a few meters apart from them as Chris took on the lead this time, along with the sergeant and Oliver who was still starry-eyed while staring at the huge beast.“Sir, can I touch it?” He asks but his hand was already raised at it.Like an adorable obedient dog, the wolf-like beast just wagged its tail as they moved along the tunnel. It seem to be smiling as it sort of pranced while its tongue dangled out of its mouth.“Uhm, I...I guess,” Chris ended up saying.The young man didn’t even hesitate upon hearing that, he seemed like a little kid as soon as he grabb
The Matriarch Chapter 13 New world
“You think we will see those things that killed those people?” Oliver ask while they were treading another long pathway.Chris ended up feeling a chill run down his spine, remembering those bodies that they found a while ago. “I hope not, I still want to get back home in one piece,” he tries to laugh it off, not wanting to cause concern to the others that were following them.“Same here,” Oliver chuckled as he nodded. “By the way, sir Chris, I wasn’t able to ask you this but what exactly made you join the front lines? I mean, since your ability is still a bit unstable and unknown, wouldn’t it have been better to stay within the camp doing office work?” he states, remembering the jurisdictions of the army.
The Matriarch Chapter 14 A special private platoon
Standing at around fifteen feet tall. The serpent kept swaying from left to right. Its round dark eyes glowed. While its red scales seemed to glimmer as it move, giving it the impression of waves.No one dared to move, seeing as the creature had an inkling to attack anything that took any kind of motion. They got that idea since it suddenly began spitting flames at all the exits that were there.They were all literally helpless now since Wolfenstein and Chris seemed to have been petrified by the beast when they accidentally looked at one another's eyes. It was like all three have had this staring contest for almost an hour, which just made all of them very anxious.“Sergeant, what are we going
The Matriarch Chapter 15 A bit of clarity
Everything was bright red. Chris could feel his body floating, yet shrouded in warmness. He opened his eyes and was shocked to see what seemed the same as a thin layer of skin surrounded in veins all over him. There was the sound of bubbling and rumbling everywhere. Though it felt as if being submerged in liquid, breathing wasn’t really that hard.“A queen!” an echoing voice suddenly began crying out the moment Chris closed his eyes.“Who’re you?” He tried calling out. Frowning when he noticed he wasn’t even opening his mouth to talk. He immediately realized that once again he was communicating via thought.“Let us serve you, oh queen!” More voice
The Matriarch Chapter 16 What now?
“Peculiar,” was all Dr. Steinz could say.As part of the proper procedure, they immediately sent all of them to the laboratory after escaping the tunnel. They also dispatched armed soldiers to check on any other survivors inside.Chris felt both relieved and awkward because he was not alone there anymore. He had the entire platoon with him. All of them buck naked while several people poked, grabbed, and touched every nook and cranny of their bodies. Checking for anything that looked unusual.But after hours of getting those rigorous and torturing experiments, they found nothing. From the x-rays, scans, blood, and test even that thing of taking specimens. All of their tests came back with
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Prologue An impending doom
Within the darkness, on a floating platform made of trees, vines, and krad carcasses, was Chris, sitting on a throne of spikes and bent trunk, along with the wriggling doctor. The roots of the fauna continued to grab hold of the now silent machinery, as it too remained helpless in the void.“We can breathe! Fascinating.”Steinz chuckled, as they were both able to remain alive, even within the emptiness of the space. A thing which was impossible. The chill prevailed, together with the silence, but it did not bother both of them, being protected by the makeshift vessel.“Let’s see you enjoy it when you get bored with the place.”Chris grumbles, sighing as he narrowed his gaze onto the infernal device. The object may have stopped, but he was certain its power remained.“I am positive we can find a way to kill boredom in someway.”The old geezer let out another cackle, enjoying his weightlessness, swimming within the nothingness like a serpentine fish. He used his webs as an anchor, makin
Chapter 231 The matriarchs power
The skies began opening up, tornadoes appeared increasingly. It started wreaking havoc, along with the continued earthquakes.Chris witnessed it all, watching how the land was breaking because of the machine. He took in a deep breath, feeling the drudge in his chest, contemplating on his plan if it will work.He’d been starting there for an hour now, and all this time, he was having doubts because of the fear which was nudging inside of him.He was so far in his thoughts that he hardly notice the portal opening nearby. Out came Raynald, a healed up Oliver, and the others.All of them stunned to see him just standing there, unmoved by all the chaos, looking into the nothingness with lifeless eyes.“Matriarch, everything all right?”It was the sergeant who asked, being the only one bold enough to approach and check up on him.That wake him from his dreamlike state, sensing those familiar energies. He smiles, having those warm presence surrounding him.Them being there somehow jolted his
Chapter 230 The first
Chris stared above, watching that beautiful large planet in the sky. He smiles, unable to believe that they are going to collide with such a gorgeous thing.He turns his gaze to the pyramid, humming non-stop. Spike roots rot around it, barely touching the area. The golems which tried to go near the site all crumbled.Once again, he fires a shot. The beam deflects, ricocheting on the nearby tree.He clicks his tongue in frustration. The machine had created its own barrier. He could only find out after getting pushed back when he approached it.“Fascinating, isn’t it? My life’s work.”The gurgling voice states.Chris’s eyes rolled, huffing in irritation before turning to the now crawling geezer.The old man’s head popped out of the body of a large beetle larvae, web like mucus continued to flow out of him, three hands twitching with excitement.Even in his new form, the fellow remained pompous of his job, as it showed in how he gaze at the mechanism.“Yes, I would have commended you for
Chapter 229 Merciful or Ruthless
After an hour of fighting, general Gently’s men started retreating, disappearing within the covers of the mist. The man himself withdrew into the veil of that thick, grayish cloud.The doctor’s lackeys cheered in triumph, having push back their enemy who tried to destroy their weapon. All of them letting out laughs, because even the monsters that were charging in had vanished.Chris watch as the group celebrated their victory and after a thorough observation, he confirmed his theory about them.Once they became complacent enough, he makes his move, stepping out of the guise of the fog calmly.“I knew you were still alive. Doctor Howard Steinz.”He states, narrowing his sights at the man who stood in the middle of them all.The geezer’s smile faded, frowning upon seeing him walk unfazed in front of all those men.The crowd was quick to gather, blocking themselves in defense of the elderly fellow.Those who had a barrier ability created a gigantic dome, protecting both the machine and t
Chapter 228 Decisive Battle
Above them, the cloud ridden sky sparked and roared, as the unrivaled beings clashed with each other.Behind them, booms of cannons and rattling of machine guns continued, and in front, debris would fall off from the top, while flashes of different colored lights would appear, together with the sounds of explosions.Chris remained still, staring at the two individuals flying in the air while cooking up a plan inside his head.“Matriarch, you think it was wise to use him?”It was Finny, fidgeting from the pressure in the atmosphere.Both superpowers kept releasing an immense trace of energy, reaching down below.It continued to make them sense the overpowering presence, causing the unbearable sensation of staying there, since they still got that fear of the danger being close by.“Zero can handle himself.”He mutters the name they gave him, confident that the being is strong enough to take on his opponent.The only trouble they had was the stray beam falling down, blowing up a portion
Chapter 227 Special weapon
Chris narrowed his eyes, feeling every bit of his body trembled in anticipation. His adrenaline was trashing about, his hearts continued to pump uncontrollably fast.The amount of aura the man was releasing was as he had expected, inciting a higher excitement in him.A grin formed inside his mask, unable to hide the sheer joy he was experiencing from relief.“Get him out of here.”He orders, not removing his eyes on the guy.From having witnessed the battle with Oliver unfold a moment ago, he was now used to his speed, so he realized how much effort he needed to exert to stop him.Though he stood straight, his fingers were twitching, alert to take out his weapon if the fellow tried to move from his place.A portal opened beside the wounded youngster, letting out Harold, Raynald, Finny, and Marco. All four were wearing masks, hiding their identity from the guy.The double S class stayed in a steady battle pose, weary of beginning an attack after that. Especially because his wound conti
Chapter 226 To be the strongest
The force that Oliver released blasted away all five mercenaries.The others caught the effects of his sudden surge, because of the wind blowing from him from the pressure.The double S class, Carl, who grinned lasciviously while looking down on the events as it unfolded, also mesmerized by the dazzling display.Oliver’s armor completely changed. It now glistened with a blinding white light, the design on each piece that he wore became more intricate.“What did he do?”Nikolai, the serpentine user, was gritting his teeth, trying to keep himself steady.The pressure being thrown at them made it difficult to move. It’s weight pushing them down to the ground.When everything settled, they all sensed an impending gap in their levels, just by looking at the youth.Oliver can feel the power surging through every vein in his body, increasing all his senses.It was as if it turned him invincible at the moment, having an overflowing amount of energy, along with becoming so light on his feet.W
Chapter 225 A decisive gamble
Oliver’s heart raced, each time someone turns his way, his blood rushing as he continued moving in the mist's guise. His every motion stayed silent, quick, and fluid.He pauses when he reaches the summit, as the clearing no longer provided any kind of protection. It was where the opening yet did not have any area to hide.He takes a few huffs of breath, shutting his eyes to muster his courage, readying himself for what he is about to do.Once done, he did not hesitate to take a step forward, having put all his mind into it. In seconds, he dashes about five meters into the clearing, but his momentum was not enough to reach the gap.“It’s the sniffer!”One soldier got a glimpse of him, gaining the attention of the others. All those that were in reserve promptly rush to the site.But he had already broken through the force field, slamming his shield right into it without a problem.He uses the sudden pause as a leverage to shift his movement, turning to his side to head towards the pyram
Chapter 224 A single man's risk
Flames, flashes of light, and debris mixed into the mist. There was barely nothing to see there because of it.Screams of terror, despair, and anger filled the air, along with the explosions and shots now and then.Deep within the middle of it all, Oliver was pulling his father to the safety of a nearby mound that he saw. Away from all the beams, bullets, and other stuff that were flying around.“Come on, dad.”He urges, as his old man could no longer move, groaning with each motion because of the wound on his legs.They froze in place, hearing a loud clicking sound behind. Instinctively, he let out a shield, blocking a claw in the nick of time.He winced, receiving the brunt and weight of the force, his bones cracking, forcing him to bend his knee to weaken its pressure.Huge mandibles began munching on his defense, attacking to break through it, while its scythe claws pulled at him. All he could do was tug at it, drawing its attention to hide his father from those large, dark, insec
