Feeding Dragons

THE HALLWAY seemed endless. Heavy doors
on either side lacked windows and delicate flowing black symbols
printed just above the security locks allowed each room to keep its
secrets since I couldn’t read Japanese.

The lab coats trailing
behind
Kobayashi
ignored me completely yet the two security guards kept hitting
me with loaded glances that had me feeling as if I had already done
something for which I should be ashamed or arrested.

I knew this nuclear inspection was the
first conducted this deep underground since the accident and I was
going to do my best to ensure I followed every protocol. I would
make no mistakes. Yet for all my internal cheerleading there was no
way I could ignore the guards silently telling me they didn’t think
I would measure up. When one leaned in to the other and spoke in a
tone which dripped with contempt I felt my chest grow rigid with
anxiety. Their disdain hummed through the air and tainted
everything around me cranking up my anxiety level until my stomach
felt sour.

Rocking to a stop I waited
for the next step in the process. I watched as the three Japanese
scientists stood silently while
Kobayashi
pressed his face forward
into a retinal scanner. I heard a mechanical voice rattle off
something from a hidden speaker box.
Kobayashi
answered back in a rapid
burst of hurried words and did something I could not see with his
hand. A loud click snapped through the air. I heard a whirring
pattern of a noise followed by a series of deeply recessed sounds
that thrummed down the cavernous space.

The door slid open and the scientists
stepped through in single file. I followed mutely. I had taken
maybe ten steps when I no longer felt the presence of the guards
behind me. I glanced back seeing only the sealed door and realized
they had remained back on the other side.

When I asked how much
farther we had to go before we reached the inspection site
Kobayashi
bowed his neck
slightly and said it was just a few more moments to walk and then I
would start the cleansing process prior to being granted access to
containment level four. I thought they were being overly cautious
as I was here to check for radioactivity not air borne infectious
vectors such as Ebola or the Lassa virus.

He motioned me to his side and gave me
a calm measuring look as if he was unsure about something. Giving
me a smile that did not reach his eyes he lifted his arm as if
about to take my hand but a heartbreaking cry of fear seemed to
ooze in from the very walls themselves. I froze. The weirdness
factor just got cranked up to a whole new level. The freak show
element of the sound radiated through my bones. My chest grew so
tight it felt like a belt was squeezing the air from my lungs. I
pushed it down into my gut and tried to pretend I hadn’t heard some
poor animal in pain.

I feel like it violates my soul knowing
that some experiments are conducted solely on the premise of ‘what
if’ and for so-called consumer safety. I don’t think it takes a
genius to realize one shouldn’t drink shampoo but every time
something is altered they use animals to test it…add a new pretty
fragrance? Bring out the bunnies and the beagles.

Kobayashi
seemed immune to the sounds for he made no mention
of them but gravely said, “We have high hopes of you so please
remember that you were especially chosen for this task. Your first
step will be to undergo decontamination to ensure no outside
microbes are introduced to the area. We cannot afford
cross-contamination.”

My heart ached for whatever poor beast
had issued that mournful cry. I knew that without fail unspeakable
inevitable horrors arise from irresponsible research. I wondered
but did not ask what type of dark science was going on here as I
knew there was nothing I could do. So I shut my ears and my heart
and nodded at him with downcast eyes. What else could I say? Gee
thanks for that vote of confidence but while I’m here could you
stop torturing poor furry animals so as not to distract me from my
job?

Then I began to wonder why they would
go to such lengths suiting me up unless there was something else
here. Something deadly that remained hundreds of feet below ground
that they were keeping secret. Containment level four protocol
required multiple stage showers at each level, a vacuum room, an
ultraviolet room, a positive pressure suit with a segregated air
supply and finally after all that I would be deep inside the
facility subject to continuous negative pressure in case of a leak.
Perhaps the only way to get to the inspection site was to pass
through an area that may have been previously exposed by a virus of
some sort? That made sense.

“You are to begin now.”

Nodding my head in understanding I
waited until the panel to the right of the door cycled up; changing
color until it hit green. I heard the door unlock and sketched a
wave at them before stepping through the entrance.

Glancing around quickly I saw nothing
but cold white tiles covering the walls and ceiling with grayish
blue tiles on the floor that made me think of decomposing flesh.
Wow-that was a happy thought….floor covering made of repurposed
corpses…the latest in environmentally conscious up-cycling. Wishing
once again I had some brain bleach to keep my mind from seeing
everything through a twisted lens caused by years of watching
horror movies I decided it was best to keep my opinions to myself.
I was jerked out of my musing as the locks on the door behind me
engaged with a sound no less final than the metal clang of a jail
house door.

“A bench that you see before has
sterile surgical scrubs in a variety of sizes please take the ones
that you think will fit best but do not remove them from the sealed
plastic. You are to enter the next room to begin the
decontamination process and then if you please put on the garments
when instructed and all will be well. You’ll be joined shortly
thereafter and the test will begin.”

I nodded to the monitor mounted near
the ceiling and walked to the table glancing at the cold steel on
which lay square plastic bags each with a single label and at least
these labels I understand. I grabbed the one marked XL given that I
was quite tall. I was tense but without hesitation I walked to the
far side door and waited just a moment for the locks to disengage
allowing me to enter. I stepped over the threshold into the air
lock. There was no going back now. One hour later I stepped through
into the last room and as instructed by the voice on the intercom I
ripped open the seal and removed the scrubs. I couldn’t wait to put
them on. I was shivering from the cool air blowing over my skin.
Once dressed in the thin cotton clothes I completed suiting up with
the space-girl outfit that would keep all airborne pathogens away
from me. I had barely finished hooking up my respirator when the
last remaining door opened. I stood quietly at the threshold
looking around and saw what appeared to be a dentist chair of all
things in the center of the room.

To say I was confused by my
surroundings would be an understatement. I looked around; nothing
else really to see here. The door I came through, the dentist
chair, another door at the far end of the room and off to my right
a large inner window with a deep blue tint; not a whole lot to look
at. I heard another click and a voice came over the loudspeaker I
had not noticed mounted in core of the room.

“If you were pleased by the garments
you were issued we would appreciate it if you remove them when
asked and re-use them when the test has been completed. Thank you
the inspection will begin in five minutes.”

Re-use them? What the hell was up with
that? Nowhere is it ever considered a good idea to re-use any item
that may have been exposed. Growing alarmed with this whole set-up
I strolled over to the loudspeaker and yelled up, “Hey! What is
going on? I’ve never heard of any type of procedure in which the
inspector remains barefoot! I’m not wearing booties inside this
suit. There were none in the packet!” No response. I tried again,
“Hello?”

I stood waiting with my hands on my
hips looking up but received no reply. The speaker remained mute
and the only sound I could hear was my own breathing rushing
through the respirator. I got the insidiously creepy feeling I was
being watched. Turning back the window was now becoming clear and I
could see the scientists watching me; lined up in a row like small
porcelain dolls. Their black beetle browed stares devoid of
anything that made me feel like this would end well for me. For a
second I remembered something not often mentioned in history
classes today because American politicians helped cover it up
afterwards and nobody wants to go down in history as an
unredeemable bastard.

The Japanese had engaged in horrific
human experimentation during World War II. Irrefutable evidence had
come to light after they surrendered to the Americans of gruesome
vivisection on prisoners of war without the benefit of painkillers
or even the luxury of anesthesia. Unit 731 run by some of the most
learned and distinguished medical doctors of Japan did such lovely
things as put a Russian mother and her young daughter into a gas
chamber then peer through the glass and watch as the mother
desperately tried to shield her five year old from the gas all
while the medicine men timed their convulsions as they died. They
exposed a three day old Chinese baby to the cold to determine the
length of time it took for hypothermia to set in; Joseph Mengle
would have loved these guys especially given the fact that almost
none of them were tried for war crimes but instead got a nice fat
check from the U.S. government as stipend in return for their data.
How fucked up is that? But I tried telling myself that was in the
past. Nobody in their right mind would try and conduct experiments
like that today. So while I was certainly freaked out I wasn’t in
any real danger.

I walked up to the glass and slapped my
fist on it. In a strident voice I demanded this bullshit stop at
once. They did nothing. Silent as the grave they stood watching me
without any indication they heard me. I pressed my face shield up
against the glass and pounded with both fists, “I know can you hear
me!” They ignored me. “Hey!” I slapped my gloved hands repeatedly
on the reflective surface while yelling like a maniac.

Finally I saw one lean forward and the
loudspeaker came to life. The voice sounded a little put out,
“Please contain yourself. This test is being conducted for the
benefit of all humanity we have no desire to see you injured in any
way. You must calm yourself; acting the hysterical woman will not
serve anyone well today” I had no time to tell him what I really
thought for I heard something behind me.

My heart thudding in my ears I spun
around not knowing what to expect. I was stunned when I saw a man
standing only ten feet away quiet as death. The gentle smile on his
face did nothing to ease my fear as icy fingers played along my
spine.

He was tall perhaps six inches more
than me which was extraordinary given the Asian cast of his face
which oddly reminded me of that actor Russell Wong. He was handsome
but there was no doubt given his features and size he was of mixed
parentage. I felt a warm heat coiling in my doodah which was just
pathetic. Here I was locked into a room for God knows what unholy
purpose and my pussy reminds me I’ve not had sex in months and this
guy just rings all my bells.

His hands which until now had remained
hidden in his front pockets looked strong but normal as they
dropped to his side; palms’ out showing me he had nothing in them.
He bowed deeply at the waist eyes cast down. Snapping back up to
his full height he said, “Please don’t be afraid of me I have no
desire to hurt you but this may be the only way to save
me.”

“
From what?”

A bitter smile creased his face and in
a deep voice tinged with sadness, he spoke just above a whisper,
“Save me from myself; my DNA has been altered by exposure. I have
not been allowed any human contact since my symptoms first became
apparent. There’s a slim possibility that an offspring might be the
answer.”

I thought perhaps I’d heard him wrong
due to the slight noise from the air circulating in my suit. “What
exactly are you talking about?”

“I’m sure you’ve heard of how some
people have deliberately begun a pregnancy in the hope that the
stem cells from the placenta could be used to save one of the
parents from a debilitating disease.”

“Not really. I mean I know it’s been
done but I don’t know anything about how it works. Not my
field.”

I couldn’t help myself. I had to know.
Because I suffer from insatiable curiosity and I also harbor a wide
streak of dumbass. “What’s wrong with you?” Then exhibiting a
complete lack of common sense I walked closer to him until I was an
arms’ length away. He stood there as if trying to decide just how
much to tell me. I trusted in my suit to keep me safe even as he
seemed to spew droplets of fear from every pore.

“Seriously-you look normal but you’re
starting to sweat buckets. Do you need help?” He shook his head but
I wasn’t sure if it was at me or he was clearing away some odd
brain flutter.

Staring up into his golden brown eyes I
began to assess his face. Searching his features and bone structure
looking for some sign of a disease anything to give me a clue but
he looked fine. Yet he was contained in a bio-level four zone so
there had to be something to mark his genetic hiccup. I stared
rudely but I saw nothing. He was a very handsome normal looking
adult male. Of course there could be unseen horrors under his
robe.