The Path Before Me (A Crowd-Pleaser)

Pg. 7: Stay Calm

Derek makes a conscious effort to slow his breathing and calm his beating heart. There is no way they could have known. If they did then he would have already been placed in one of these machines, like others had done. They are genuinely asking his help with expertise and that's what he'll offer.

Suze turns around to face Derek. Her forehead is wrinkled and her lips show displeasure. "I know what you must be thinking..." She moves a loose hair back behind her ear. "Before you judge us, please know that they were all willing. When the symptoms begin to show, we always give them the option of cremation or the lab."

Derek nods, quietly. He wishes that he had been given the option so kindly. The scientists didn't always wait for their subjects to be dead before placing them in the machines.

Suze nods as well, accepting Derek's silence before turning back around. "Please let me show you the area of concern." She walks quickly into the room, navigating it adeptly before stopping at one machine.

The giant tube of this machine is only filled halfway and the woman within it doesn't show any physical signs of The Virus. Like all the others, however, she is already dead.

"This machine has a leak," Suze explains. "We've tried patching it up, but the patching doesn't seem to hold. Would you please take a look and see if there's anything we can do?"

"Sure, I'll take a look." Derek steps forward to examine the machine. There are many screens and buttons that don't make sense to him, but that's not what he's looking for. He walks around the machine to where the pipes are hooked up. He can see the pipe in question. The crack in the pipe isn't much, only leaving small droplets of green beneath it. Strange that such a small crack would cause the machine to drain down to its halfway point.

As Derek checks the machine, a small movement catches his eye. The movement is so slight that he wouldn't have caught it if he hadn't been so close.

The woman's finger twitched.

Derek's quick heartbeat begins again. Could it be that this woman isn't actually dead? Is it because they put her in here alive, despite what they said? Or is it because The Virus refuses to let her die?

When Derek had awoken inside a testing tube, he was on his own. It was only through his own sheer force that he was able to escape. Perhaps this woman could use some assistance. Maybe Suze and Taye would let her out if they knew she wasn't dead. But then again, Derek wasn't crazy when he awoke in the tube. He still had his sanity, even though none of the scientists believed him. Maybe this woman truly is insane and letting her out of the tube would cause more havoc than good.

What should Derek do?

1 - Say and do nothing

2 - Tell Taye and Suze

3 - Secretly help the woman escape