Project HAVOC

Chapter III

Warning: More italics are coming. It depicts the aftermath of the rape, so it's not for the faint of heart.

"Chance Ashwood? Chance Ashwood, this is Dr. Richmond. Can you hear me?"

Chance roused at the sound of his name, and his eyes fluttered open. He found himself in a small room with white walls. A couple of plain, black chairs lined one side of the room while a scale and some sort of medical apparatus occupied the opposite. Directly in front of him, stainless steel cabinets reflected bright, fluorescent lights. He instinctively brought the back of his hand to his face, the movement sending a shot of pain up his body. He let out a cry and dropped his arm back to his side.

"You're in the facility's clinic," Dr. Richmond said. "You were found in your cell unconscious with a 100.6-degree fever."

Chance blinked rapidly, the image of the doctor finally coming to view. The man was leaning nonchalantly on the counter opposite him. A deep frown wrinkled his long face as he impatiently tapped his clipboard with a pen.

Chance's arm was painfully numb, and he realized he was laying on his side. He tried to reposition his body, but the movement caused another shot of pain.

"You shouldn't move, yet," Dr. Richmond said, lowering his eyes to his clipboard. "In addition to the fever, you were treated for torn rectal tissues."

Chance's mind was a blur, unable to comprehend the doctor's words. "W... what..." He stopped short, his swollen lips making it painful to speak.

"Your cellmate said you fell from your bed. Is that true?"

Cellmate... that word suddenly pulled Chance back to reality. He was in prison, and his cellmate was Bryan.

Bryan raped him.

Dr. Richmond impatiently cleared his throat. "How did you sustain your injuries, Chance?"

The doctor's question stabbed him like a knife. Silently, Chance glanced him, studying the expressionless face. He had seen this before. He knew what happened. Why would Dr. Richmond ask such an obvious question?

Chance licked his lips, his dry mouth barely forming words. "I... I..."

Though he tried, Chance couldn't talk about what had happened. It was the most humiliating thing Chance had went through. The horrid stuff Bryan forced him to do and endure was unspeakable. He wanted it tucked away in the deepest crevice of his mind and forgotten.

"I fell," Chance finally said, his eyes swelling with tears. He was pathetic. Better men would had likely fought till the death before they allowed that to happen. Bryan didn't hold back his punches with Chance. Though he had taken hits during football, Bryan was abnormally strong— almost inhuman. His struggle with Bryan lasted no more than half a minute before he gave in, hoping the sooner he cooperated, the sooner it will be over. Chance wanted to live.

But for what? His family disowned him and his friends ostracized him. Once he finished serving his time, he would have to register as a sex offender and society will also turn on him. Even now, the doctor didn't see Chance Ashwood, he saw just another inmate.

What was there to live for?

Dr. Richmond began scribbling on his clipboard, his face as still as a stone. "We usually don't offer this to new inmates, but since you're already here, I would like to suggest some specialized treatment." Dr. Richmond paused for Chance to respond. When none followed, he continued. "It's an experimental gene-splicing procedure that will only take twenty minutes. It will help with your pain and... and protect you from any diseases you may contract."