4.
The Transformation
"Now, if you look here,
Doctor, you'll notice that the mutates have begun working already.
Just shortly after being injected they are quickly interacting with
the various cells in the dragon's body. We should be ready to take
the next step." Guiver exclaimed to Gerald.
Gerald
looked through the microscope, turning the knobs to focus on the
blood sample, "Indeed. Let us begin."
"If you
will follow me sir I will escort you to the observation room,
Doctor." Guiver said.
"Wait a second, I thought we
and the team agreed on a more close up and personal observation? I
don't wish to sit a hundred feet up behind bulletproof class as my
creation comes to life. I want to be there when it is born to its new
destiny. I want to be there to experience what I have created."
"But sir. We haven't even tested this procedure
and
"
Gerald cut him off, "No ifs, ands or buts
about it! What I say goes. I want to be down there. You and the rest
can sit all cuddled up in your glass chamber, but I want to be there
when it opens its eyes for the first time. I want it to know who its
father is."
"Yes sir. I will arrange for the guards
to get you some protective gear. Please be careful though."
"Trust
me, there is no need to say that. This time we will not fail, for we
will show the world what we can create with our minds. We are making
history today Guiver and we are making a future."
"Yes
sir."
Gerald pulled his cane off the table and began to
limp towards the door. Suddenly, Maria ran in, a guard followed,
taking hold of her arm as he tripped over his feet.
"Grandpa!"
she screamed as she hugged him.
"Oh my! Little one, what
are you doing here? You know very well this is a restricted area! I
don't want you to get hurt." Gerald said.
The fallen
guard got up, gasping for air, "Sir. I'm sorry, but she was too
fast. I tried to grab her, but it was too late."
"Don't
worry about it, just make sure that everything is within protocol and
that we have nothing to worry about."
The guard gave a
small salute as he rushed out the door, "Yes sir!"
Gerald
looked down at Maria with a serious face. She looked back with her
puppy eyes and smiled at him. Gerald couldn't help chuckle at the
innocence portrayed by the five-year old, "All right. All right.
You can watch me work in the observation room, but no trouble!"
She
began to hop around joyfully, "Can I bring Sonic too?"
He
looked hesitantly at her, "I...I suppose."
"Yay!
Thank you Grampy!"
"Didn't I tell you not to call me
that? Oh well. Now go along and get Sonic. Doctor Guiver here will
take you to where you need to be."
"Okay, Grampy!"
Maria said as she ran out of the room energetically.
Guiver
raised his voice, "What? I don't want to take care of her!
Please Doctor! Remember what happened last time? I still have a
scar
"
Gerald cut him off, "Now, now. Don't
start with me Guiver. Please attend to those matters at once. I need
to prepare myself."
"Yes sir." He said with an
irritated tone.
Guiver walked down the barren halls
yelling, "Maria! Maria! Where are you?"
"In
here Uncle Geezer!" Maria yelled with a giggle.
"Don't
call me that! Now tell me where you are!"
"In
Grandpa's office!"
Guiver tapped on the large oak door
lightly and pushed it to the side. The room was a mess full of papers
and diagrams. In the center sat a plain desk with a picture shadowing
it on the back wall. It was a painted image of Maria herself.
Guiver heard a faint sound of squeaking and the rustling of
papers beneath the desk, "Maria?"
Maria shot out
from under the desk, a lab coat covering her small body that was
three times as big, papers scattered everywhere beside her feet. Her
hair was a stringy mess as a little, furry brown hedgehog lied on top
of it.
"I found Sonic, Uncle Geezer!"
"That's
all very nice, now we have to go. Gather your things and follow me.
Oh, and leave the rodent behind."
"He isn't a
rodent! Grandpa said I could take him!"
"Yes, but it
is unsafe. He could cause some damage, especially when he's with
you."
Maria began to sob, "You're mean!"
Guiver
looked at the crying Maria for some time before he began to get a
sick feeling to his stomach. He hated it when children cried, because
they never stopped until they got their way. The only way to solve
this problem was to do it gently, Guiver thought.
Guiver
walked over to Maria and knelt beside her, "Now, now. I'm not a
bad guy. I just don't want Sonic to get hurt, that's all."
Maria
wiped her eyes and looked at Guiver with a saddened face, "You
mean it? Why would he get hurt?"
Guiver spoke in a
faking, worried tone, "There are some really bright lights where
we are going. If Sonic was in there he would go blind and then he
couldn't play anymore."
"But, couldn't we get him
some sun glasses?"
'Damnit, I hate it when kids get
smart' Guiver thought.
He picked Sonic up from her head and
put him in his arms, "He's too small and he's still a baby
Maria. Let's let him sleep okay?"
Maria finally stopped
sobbing and bowed her head, giving a small nod of approval, "Where
will he sleep?"
Guiver looked around trying to find a
place to put the rowdy little hedgehog. Suddenly he got an idea, "Why
don't we put him in this warm coat you are wearing and then lay it
nicely on the desk? He'll love it there."
Maria nodded
and took off the coat, handing it to Guiver. He smiled and placed
Sonic, which was fighting to get out of his grasp, into the front
coat pocket. When he was done settling the hedgehog he folded some of
the coat over the pocket to keep the hedgehog from escaping and
placed it on the desk.
"There, no worries. Now let's go
see Grandpa."
"Okay, Uncle Geezer!" Maria said
with a smile as she ran out of the room.
"Damn kid."
Guiver muttered as he ran after her.
"Hamsburg!
Please fetch my lucky coat, I want this to run without any problems!"
Gerald yelled across the hall to his assistant.
It was always
a mystery to Hamsburg as to why one of the greatest scientific
geniuses in the world would be so superficial. There was never really
telling what the Doctor would come up with or believe in. He was an
insanely good man with a mind that spanned galaxies.
Professor
Hamsburg pushed his way through the door, papers scattered
everywhere. It was a true mess. He was surprised that the Doctor
actually worked in this environment or that he could work here at
all.
He searched through the papers looking for the white
coat. Finally, he spotted it on a small desk in the center of the
room. He walked over and picked up the folded, silky coat, moving
hastily back out into the hallway to the Doctor.
"Here
you are sir!" Hamsburg shouted trying to catch his
breath.
Gerald took the coat and unfolded it with care. He
placed his arms through it and adjusted the fit, "Thank you
Hamsburg, this is all I needed. Hmm. It seems a little heavier than
before."
"Maybe you left your journal inside sir."
Hamsburg said.
"Possibly."
Gerald felt
around his pockets until he heard a soft squeak, "Hamsburg!
Watch your manners! I think you need to lay off the dinner
meals."
"But sir
" Hamsburg tried to
explain himself as Gerald walked away.
"Maria,
keep calm!" Guiver barked at the little girl as she tugged at
his leg asking questions.
"Where's Grandpa?"
"Just
wait, and don't put your hands on the glass!"
The other
scientist in the room laughed and commented on the odd couple. No one
ever imagined Doctor Guiver with a kid, even if it wasn't his. It was
a funny scene to remember. They could all tell the cute little girl
annoyed Guiver, and they enjoyed every minute of it.
"Shut
up fools! I help pay your salary and I make sure you have a job. If I
hear anything else I'll take the opposite into consideration!"
Guiver yelled, his face turning red with anger and aggravation.
At
once the scientists that filled the room halted their laughter and
fell into a deep silence. They all peered down at the large, white
dome and awaited the historical show about to take place.
Maria
screamed with excitement as her grandfather walked through a door in
the dome, lab coat and goggles on, "It's Grandpa!"
Gerald
adjusted his goggles and limped towards the oval platform in the
center of the dome. He glanced at the tall structure and placed his
hand on one of the pillars, "Release the cage!"
Suddenly
the ceiling began to move, it slid apart, side from side as a crane
lowered a small cage. Inside was the Komodo dragon. It hissed and
threw itself into the sides trying to escape, a vicious display of
instinct and ferociousness.
Gerald waved up at the
observation room hoping Maria would catch his hello.
He cupped
his hands over his mouth and yelled out in the dome, "Activate
the emeralds and lower the creature to the center of the
structure!"
A loudspeaker crackled, "Yes sir. We are
proceeding as planned. The room has been cleaned and stabilized so
that no other living organism is affected by the energies. As we
lower the creature into position the emeralds will be warming up.
When we have them at full power we'll release the bars on the cage,
all should go smoothly. Once the transformation is complete a team of
guards will rush in to restrain the creature and carry it off to its
chambers for further study."
"Good! Good!"
Gerald yelled, a smile lighting his face.
The loudspeaker
tuned off as the cage hit the base of the structure, the crane
pulling its claws away from the barred enclosure and raising itself
back to the ceiling.
Sonic awoke at the strange
sounds all around him. He looked around to see where he was, but was
blocked off by the vision of all white. This was a strange place and
it smelled bad. Without hesitation he crawled to the top where the
fresh air was breathable and inhaled thickly. He looked about to
notice that his resting place was bustling with activity, hanging
onto the white softness with dear life as it moved around. He became
dizzy at once and decided he had had enough of it. Without another
thought he leapt out of the place and onto the floor, shaking his
furry body to loosen himself up.
Everywhere he turned it was
white. He had never been in such a place before and wondered where he
could find some food. He looked up to see a large animal towering to
the sky, mumbling much like another animal he enjoyed playing with,
but this one was louder and hurt his ears. It didn't seem to notice
that he had escaped from its fur. Maybe it was trying to eat him?
Maybe it had taken him and was saving him for later? He didn't waste
any time to run in the other direction. Behind him he heard an even
louder noise, earth shattering as it shook the ground and almost
knocked him off his feet, but he kept running hoping not to be
eaten.
Gerald screamed and limped as fast as he could
after the scurrying hedgehog, "Stop that animal at once! Don't
start anything! Stop at once!"
Before he could do
anything the little hedgehog leapt onto the structure and hid behind
the cage. Gerald screamed, "Stop! No!"
Before his
words could be heard the emeralds began to glow brightly, they beamed
with energy as the light grew stronger.
Sonic
sniffed around the shiny bars. They looked like plants, but they
didn't smell like them. He tried to gnaw on one of the shiny plants,
but to no avail they didn't move or chip. He sniffed some more till
he picked up another scent, moving his eyes upward to see a long
slithery tongue flicking over him. The monster hissed and hit the
bars forcefully.
Sonic backed up that instant, this time
something was trying to eat him! He knew, though, that if he kept his
distance the monster couldn't get to him. Suddenly, the worst of
things happened. The bars moved out of place and released the
monster. It came dashing through towards him. Sonic gave a small,
terrifying squeak as he turned and ran like lighting in the other
direction.
Maria wailed and hit the glass, "No!
Sonic no!"
Guiver tried to restrain her, but she bit his
arm and ran towards the exit, "Damn kid!"
He quickly
ran after her rubbing his now bruised and teeth marked arm.
Gerald ducked as the emeralds shot out beams of
energy at the center of the platform. The light filled the room and
blinded everything and everyone in site. He covered his face with his
hands and knelt on the ground fearing the intensity of the beams.
Finally, after a few seconds everything was still. Silence
filled the dome as the lights faded and the emeralds stopped
glowing.
Gerald uncovered his face, squinting to see what had
happened. He gasped in shock as he tumbled onto his back. What was
before him was nothing he had ever expected.
The Komodo
dragon had grown. Its body covered the entire outside of the dome and
curled around itself. It lay on its stomach, head rising to the
ceiling as it flicked its massive tongue across the walls. Its scales
were a glossy green and shined under the lights. Then, with a small
raise in its head it opened its monstrous jaws and let out a hissing
roar that cracked the glass on every window within a hundred yard
area.
Gerald covered his ears as he stared in awe at his new
creation. It was a magnificent display of power and elegance. He had
never imagined it would turn out like this. He would be famous
without a doubt.
"Marvelous! Marvelous!" Gerald
said as he stood up.
Sonic tried to focus as he
opened his eyes, head aching and throbbing as the blood rushed back
to his body. He looked around to see if he had escaped the monster.
It looked as if he did. He arched his back in pain, feeling with his
hand behind him to find a rough surface. He jumped up at once at the
sound of a roar; the surface trembled and hummed with that sound. It
felt like an earthquake had just struck.
The monster wasn't
gone. It had caught him! He got on all two legs and shook his head in
multiple directions trying to find an exit. Wait a second, two legs?
He tripped on himself trying to walk, scared and confused. He had a
strange feeling that he was going to die.
A tide
of guards rushed into the dome, all with weapons in hand. The halted
at once when they saw the gigantic lizard.
"How in hell
are we supposed to get that thing out of here?" one of the
guards yelled.
Gerald looked at them, "We don't. It has
grown larger than I imagined. Just try to put it to sleep for now, we
will figure something out soon."
"Sir. It's just too
big! Putting that thing to sleep is like asking for us to put
everyone on the colony to sleep. We don't have that many darts or
chemicals to perform that."
"Just do it!"
Gerald barked.
The guards looked hesitantly around, aiming
their weapons at the creature's head. It hissed once more and curved
its head towards its predators. Suddenly it let out a screeching roar
as it swung its tail across the floor and knocked the guards over.
They toppled onto one another and crashed into the wall.
"No!
You aren't supposed to do this!" Gerald screamed.
Then,
Maria ran through the open door, Guiver chasing after her yelling for
her to stop.
"Grandpa! Sonic!" Maria shouted, hoping
to get an answer.
Gerald replied, "It's okay little one!
Now don't come in here! Leave at once!"
"I have to
get Sonic!"
Sonic listened and heard the
sweet voice of his animal friend. He knew though that the monster was
still in here, but he couldn't leave his friend behind.
He
pushed himself up and crawled towards the voice, over the rough
surfaces and onto the crystal white floors. His friend was there. It
cried, as if in pain. He couldn't have her hurt. He had to protect
her.
The monster loomed over him sniffing. It hissed once
more and twisted itself in his direction. He glanced back and began
to crawl as fast as he could, but with much surprise the monsters
head swooshed over him and went after a different target.
Maria
kept screaming, hoping her pet was okay. Suddenly she saw it, the
gaping jaws as they reached for her.
Gerald threw his hands
up, waving them to the door, "Maria! Run!"
She
ducked her head and crouched as the monster lunged at its new meal.
Sonic didn't know what to do, but his mind was
set that he would save her. He opened his mouth trying to speak,
"Ma-ri-a. Ma-ri-a!"
A low humming began to fill the
dome. Light darted from the floor as the seven Chaos Emeralds floated
into the sky. They began circling and surging with energy, suddenly
stopping, and within a second they crashed into the desperate
hedgehog, fusing with him.
Beams of light cracked the surface
and walls of the dome. The monster stopped at once and closed its
eyes, blinded by the furious storm of lights.
Gerald rushed
over to Maria taking her close to him and carrying her to the door.
He glanced back to see what had happened and his jaw dropped. Before
him was an angel. A golden angel of hope as it levitated in the air,
shining and mysterious. Its spikes rose to the sky and it looked as
if it had wings.
Sonic opened his eyes once again,
feeling a wonderful sensation grace over. He was floating in mid air.
He always wondered what it was like to be a bird, now he knew.
He
had to save Maria though, and without much more to think he dived at
the monster, for once not thinking of himself. If he was to be eaten,
better it was him than his friend.
With a clash of thunder he
landed his fist into the monsters jaw. A giant crack was heard
throughout the dome as the monster collided with the wall, toppling
over on itself. Knocked out cold the monster gave a final hiss as it
closed its eyes and let its tongue drop.
Maria sat near her
grandfather, her eyes wide with amazement, "Grandpa. Sonic is an
angel!"
Gerald watched as the flying, golden hedgehog
hovered over its fallen victim, "Yes little one, he is. He
is
"