Chapter 33

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I spent the night writhing in pain. I had endured more than my share of pain in my life, but this was beyond anything I had ever experienced. The serum they had injected me with felt like a swarm a bees stinging from the inside a 1000 times a second. I felt as if I my blood vessels might burst from the pressure and my heart beat was so fast that it seemed like it was vibrating.

No one came to check on me. They abandoned me to whatever fate had in store for me. A few times, I went into seizure until my body recovered to a steady level of nearly tolerable pain. Still, no one came to my aid.

I guessed that it was a few hours later when I opened my eyes. I wasn't sure if I had passed out from the pain, or simply fallen asleep. It felt like my body had processed most of the serum, but I was exhausted beyond measure. My muscles were sore and I was dangerously dehydrated. Even my bones felt tired from the burning sensation they had endured for hours during the night.

"Hey, princess," a gruff voice sounded from somewhere to my left. I slowly rolled my head towards the sound. Pi was lying on a bed identical to mine 10 feet away. I was a little surprised to see him alive. An unmutated person wouldn't have survived the first few seconds of the brutal beating I had given him.

"This is quite the makeover you gave me." His voice was strained. He grabbed at his ribs as he let out a weak cough. He wasn't wrong. His face was a grotesque mass of pulverized meat. "I suppose this makes us even now." It was a statement, not a question. "And by the looks of you, I'd say I'm still going to come out on top. Tough break," he feigned sympathy. Before I could respond, the door to the lab opened, and the sadistic blonde doctor entered.

"You're both awake! Delightful!" She clapped her hands together, sounding entirely too pleased. "I'll see to you as soon as I finish up with Aria," she said, looking at Pi. She turned to me and walked over to my bed.

"How are you feeling today," she asked me in a bright, cheery voice that in no way fit the situation.

"Peachy," I replied sarcastically.

"Good!" she said, ignoring my sarcasm. "Because, your next round of treatment starts right now." She picked up a syringe filled with the same ugly, brownish liquid from the night before.

"Seriously?" I asked in disbelief. They never administered treatments less than a couple of weeks apart. A few hours seemed ludicrous.

"Seriously," she replied with a menacing smile. "The serum has to run through your system constantly, or it won't work."

"For how long?"

"Until you are compliant."

"So, this is torture?" I was beginning to feel that the serum might be nothing more than an instrument of pain.

"Essentially," she agreed with a disinterested shrug. She jabbed the needle into my vein without warning.

"Good luck, your highness," she said with a backwards wave, walking away to attend to Pi.

The serum took effect much more quickly this time. My veins began to burn almost instantly. Within minutes, I was delirious with pain. I thought I might have said words in between my screams, but it was hard to know for sure what they were. After about an hour or so, relief finally came when I blacked out.

I lost track of everything after that. I had no idea how many rounds of treatment I'd undergone, or how long it had been since I started them. I no longer knew where I was. They had moved me from the lab, but I had not been aware enough to pay attention to where they had moved me.

At some point, while I was in a semi-conscious state as a round of serum wore off, Pi'ilani's face floated above me. I had no idea if it was real or not, even as it spoke to me.

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