Of Mutants and Men

[03]

          Erik remembered distantly a saying that man was by nature a social animal. Perhaps it was Headmaster Kalb who had said it. Even before the world took a turn for the worse, the pure-blooded German boys bullied him, calling him filth. They were so certain he cheated when throwing javelins because of his origins, his genetic superiority unknown – nobody except his parents knew of his mutation.

Due to the bitter memories and his current predicament, the metal bender thought of himself emotionally detached since the very moment his mother got shot to death. 

Then Angelika proved him wrong.

Though he would never admit it out loud – his pride forbade it – the absence of his unhealthily curious cellmate amplified the void within him; silence's weight crushed him and the lack of companionship triggered sadness.

After Angelika got drafted away, Erik was enlisted next. But at the end of Schmidt's play time, he was brought back to the cell while she was not. Different scenarios formed in his head and none of them eased his mind. It was unlikely of Schmidt to kill the telepath but she could've snapped under the pressure he exerted on her.

"Guard! Guard!" Erik called out, his hands gripping the bars guarding his cell.

String of insults grumbled under his breath, a guard appeared from the corner. "What?"

"Can you tell me what became of... the girl?" The boy asked.

"You called me just to ask where that mousy little brat is?" Shoving his fists through the bars, the soldier grabbed the boy by his collar and shook him violently. "Do you think I have nothing better to do than care about what happens to that piece of shit? Dr. Schmidt might favour you freaks but I can barely stand the sight of you without throwing up. I-"

Erik closed his eyes and grasped on the blooming anger just like Schmidt had taught him. His eyebrows furrowed as he concentrated and willed the bars to flex. Please, please, please, he pleaded inwardly until a terrible screech was heard.

The guard screamed. His biceps were tightly encased by the deformed metal bars, threatening to crush the bones under the mutant's command. Pride swelled in the boy's mind for a short moment before he regained his seriousness.

"What do you think you're doing, boy? Let go of me, you son of a-"

"If you finish that sentence, I'll make you regret it," Erik threatened, his eyes burning with newly found rage, "Tell me everything you know about Angelika."

"I told you that I don't know!"

"Think harder!"

The immobilized man screamed again as his left bicep was fractured.

"Okay, okay!" The guard cried out. "She killed everyone in the sick bay then tried to kill herself but Dr. Schmidt stopped her. Now, he's keeping her closer. I don't know what he's doing with her – I swear on my mother's grave – but I heard he's keeping her in lab C12."

"Where is lab C12?"

"Right next to Dr. Schmidt's office."

Satisfied with his answer, Erik said, "I'll release your good arm. Throw all of your guns and baton into the cell. If you don't, you'll lose your life in the most painful way."

Letting out a sigh of relief when his right arm was returned, the guard obediently did what he was told. He pushed his rifle through first then two handguns and his trusted baton. Confidently, Erik grabbed the handgun and cocked it like he had seen soldiers do, aiming it in the center of the man's forehead. His bony hands and arms trembled under the weight of the firearm.

"Now, I want you to open this cell." Erik ordered once more.

"Are you crazy? Dr. Schmidt will kill me if he finds out!" The injured soldier protested. "And even if you do fire that thing, others will hear you. You won't get far before you're dragged back here."

"No one questions what happens in the cells. Twins die screaming and you shoot them down like animals any time of the day. What makes you think they'll come to your rescue? Why would they think it's any different from what happens every day?"

"Dr. Schmidt-"

"You are going to die either way," Erik cut him off. "At least if you do as I say, I promise you a quick death."

-&-

Angelika lied unmoving on her cot. White bandage was wrapped on both of her burned hands – an unfortunate outcome of Schmidt's outrageous experiment. Since the day she made an attempt on her life, he denied her food and water. Good girls get rewarded, Angelika, he told her, but the disobedient ones require discipline.

Her mind drifted to the night she had a heated debate regarding Schmidt's future with Erik.

"I will kill him," Erik said confidently, "Even if it's the last thing I do, I want to watch the life leave his eyes."

Suppressing a shudder, the younger mutant spoke up, "You cannot teach a murderer that killing is wrong by taking their life."

"He is not just a murderer," He retorted, "Death is just an unfortunate side-effect of his existence, Angelika. Don't forget what he did to your family, to my mother, to us. A monster needs to be hunted down and killed."

The young girl pursued her lips at the mention of her family. She was supposed to die with them – it was protocol to send children under 18 to the gaz chamber along with women, elders and the sick.

It was truly amazing how the fear to lose your loved ones could enable you to do anything to save them.

Though Angelika remembered vaguely what happened that day, she never forgot the sensation of power laced with anger and dread, or the pleads of her aunt to stop. When the gaz chamber was demolished by a series of continuous light bolts, the guards fled for their lives. Only one stupidly brave man dared to approach the destructive mutant.

Her aunt gave her up when Schmidt vowed to take good care of her sister's baby. Angelika followed him wordlessly to ensure the safety of her remaining family. Henryk seemed to have sensed the impeding tragedy and ran after her, only to get trampled under the thick boots of Nazi soldiers.

"I want him to suffer, Erik," She confessed through gritted teeth, "I want him to feel to helpless till the moment he dies naturally while I laugh at his face. Death is too quick and not enough."

Angelika screamed until her lungs ran out of air and her throat could no longer emit a sound. She ached to see him writhing pathetically in her grasp as he begged for his life until his last breath. Her chest heaved heavily as she tossed to her side.

Since the mishap at the sick bay, Schmidt had her kill hundreds more in various methods. Some died peacefully by a sudden heart attack and others endured the pain of burning flesh, choking on their own vomit. His booming laughter still echoed in her head.

Their last thoughts broke her heart; they pleaded to be spared and prayed for the safety of their remaining family and friends if it was the end for them.

I'm a monster.

"Angelika! Are you in there, Angelika?"

The familiar bang of a gun was followed by an audible klunk of the heavy padlock hitting the floor. Angelika jumped off her cot and rushed to the steel door. Was it a cruel trick of her mind or did her grumpy cellmate truly come to her rescue?

She clumsily opened the door and the sight of Erik's crooked grin summoned tears to resurface in her bloodshot eyes. Throwing her arms around his neck, she pulled him into a tight embrace, not caring the splatters of blood tainting his skin were rubbing off on hers.

"I- Erik- What- How?" Angelika stuttered, letting out a breathy laughter.

"I promised you that I'd get us out of here, didn't I?" Erik said cheekily.

"Still," she protested, "You shouldn't have risked your life coming for me. I wouldn't have resented you even if you left on your own, Erik."

"We're friends, Angelika. And friends mean nobody gets left behind."