Chapter 64: Fight back now
“Something about that symbol doesn’t feel right,” Maya said. She was back at her table in the old house, papers and books scattered everywhere. “It’s like a warning. Not just that they’re here, but that they’ve already started.”
Jack frowned. “Started what?”
Maya turned the page of the ancient book she had open. “An experiment.”
Damien leaned on the wall, his arms crossed. “You mean they’re turning people again?”
“Yes,” Maya said quietly, her eyes focused. “But this time, they’re doing it somewhere close. Too close.”
Lyra stood by the window, her arms wrapped around herself. “What if it’s in town?”
Maya shook her head. “No. It’s here. The symbol was drawn near the woods by the school. They must be using a place no one would ever suspect.”
“The school itself,” Damien said, his tone sharp.
Everyone went silent.
Jack’s eyes widened. “That can’t be right. Teachers, students, cameras—how would they even do that?”
“Think about it,” Maya said, her voice calm but heavy. “They’d want a place with young people, full of energy, easy to test without anyone noticing. You said Alina just appeared there, right? No record, no ID.”
Lyra turned to Damien. “She was part of it. She was watching us from inside the school.”
Maya nodded. “Exactly. They’re not just experimenting anymore. They’re recruiting.”
Jack’s voice dropped. “You mean… some of our classmates might already be hybrids?”
The thought made Damien’s stomach twist. He remembered Alina’s calm face, her strange eyes, how she seemed to know things she shouldn’t. “We need to go back,” he said. “We need proof.”
Maya closed the book. “If we go, we go at night. Less chance of being seen.”
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That night, the group met behind the school. The moonlight was faint, and the air smelled like rain.
“Are you sure about this?” Jack asked quietly.
“No,” Damien said, “but we have to know.”
They crept inside through the back door. The hallways were dark and silent, their footsteps echoing softly on the tile.
Lyra led the way with her flashlight. “Where do we even start?”
“Basement,” Maya said. “Most of the old labs are underground. It would make sense to hide something there.”
They moved through the empty hall until they found the door leading down to the storage area. It was locked. Damien pushed the handle—it didn’t move.
“Move back,” Lyra said, pulling out a small silver tool from her jacket. She twisted it in the lock until it clicked.
“Where did you even learn that?” Jack whispered.
Lyra gave a small smirk. “You don’t want to know.”
They went down the stairs. The deeper they went, the colder it got. The light flickered once before dying completely, leaving them in darkness.
Maya turned on her flashlight. “Keep close.”
At the bottom, they saw a heavy metal door. A red light blinked beside it.
Damien touched the panel. “It’s a scanner.”
“Try the code from the book,” Maya said.
He typed it in. The red light turned green, and the door slid open slowly.
What they saw made everyone freeze.
Inside was a room filled with glass tanks. Each one glowed faint blue, and inside each tank floated something—people. Or what used to be people.
Their skin shimmered like scales, their eyes half open, and tubes ran from their bodies to the walls.
Jack stepped back, covering his mouth. “What the hell…”
Maya moved closer, reading a label. “Subject 9A – Wolf-Mermaid. Subject 10C – Vampire Hybrid.” Her voice trembled. “They’re still alive.”
Lyra looked around. “So this is where they do it.”
Damien stared at the tanks, his heart pounding. “They’re not just experimenting—they’re creating an army.”
A soft noise came from the corner. They turned and saw a small figure sitting in a chair, shivering. It was a girl, maybe fifteen. Her hair was messy, her eyes distant.
Maya knelt down. “Hey, it’s okay. We’re not here to hurt you.”
The girl’s voice shook. “They said… they’d make me better. They said I’d be special.”
Maya frowned. “What did they do to you?”
The girl lifted her hand. Her nails had turned silver, her skin glowing faintly under the light.
Jack whispered, “They already started with her.”
Damien knelt beside her. “Who did this?”
The girl’s eyes filled with tears. “The Doctors. They said the next phase starts tomorrow. They said you’d come.”
Lyra’s grip on her blade tightened. “They’re expecting us.”
Suddenly, the lights flickered again. A voice echoed through the room.
“Curiosity can be dangerous.”
Everyone turned. A man stood by the door, wearing a long coat, his face half-hidden in shadow.
Damien took a step forward. “Who are you?”
The man smiled faintly. “Someone who’s been watching you for a long time, Damien.”
Maya whispered, “He’s one of them.”
The man stepped closer. His eyes glowed silver like Alina’s. “You’ve been trying to stop something that can’t be stopped. Evolution doesn’t ask for permission.”
Lyra raised her blade. “Then we’ll make it stop.”
He chuckled softly. “You can try.”
Before they could move, he pressed a small button on his wrist device. The tanks began to hiss and bubble. The creatures inside started to stir.
Maya shouted, “They’re waking up!”
Damien ran to the nearest control panel, smashing the buttons, but the alarms started blaring. The floor shook as one of the tanks cracked open.
A tall figure stepped out, half-human, half-beast, eyes glowing red.
“Run!” Damien shouted.
They turned for the stairs, dodging the glass as it shattered. The creatures began to move, crawling out of the tanks.
As they reached the door, Damien looked back one last time. The man was gone, but his voice echoed through the intercom.
“You can’t stop what’s coming, Damien. The world doesn’t need wolves anymore.”
They burst out of the building into the cold night air.
Breathing hard, Maya looked back at the school. “It’s worse than we thought.”
Damien nodded. “We need help. Those things aren’t just hybrids—they’re weapons.”
Lyra looked at him. “So what now?”
Damien stared up at the dark sky. “Now, we fight back.”