Page 55 of Legend of Scorpio
“I’m the one who should be asking that,” she chided softly as she reached for some gauze and began patting the spot where they’d taken a chunk of his flesh.
“Bah. It was just a few needles,” he scoffed. “The most traumatizing thing thus far was having some dude holding my dick and telling me to pee in a bottle.”
“Have you found out what they want?”
“Other than a lab rat?”
Before she could reply, a voice boomed, “You are much more than a rat. Your kind are so very interesting. Born human—your genetics don’t lie—and yet there are differences that go beyond chromosomes. DNA changes the likes of which we’ve never seen but suspected since we discovered the existence of the Zodiac Warriors.”
Rebecca whirled to see the same older man she’d met in Antarctica. “You again.”
“Yes, me. Dr. Augustus Monroe. We never had a chance for a proper introduction since you abruptly left our last meeting. Luckily, you were drawn from your hidey-hole so we could continue with the project.”
“This is kidnapping. I demand you release us at once!”
“You are in no place to ask anything,” snapped Monroe. “On the contrary, either you cooperate, or face the consequences.”
“What could be worse than being held prisoner?”
“I can think of a few things. How attached are you to your limbs?”
Her heart stuttered. “You’d maim me?”
“I would do a great many things in my pursuit of science. So either you aid us, or suffer.”
“Help you with what? I know nothing.”
“You found the orb,” reminded the doctor.
“By accident. And only because you sent me to that location. You could have located it yourself.”
“Do you think we didn’t try? Years we’ve been searching. Our donors were beginning to grow impatient. Luckily, it was brought to our attention that we needed a specific set of people. A human bonded to a Zodiac, which turned out to be you, and the fellow who calls himself Scorpio.”
“What do you mean bonded? I barely know Scorpio. We’d only just met when you found us.”
“While your meeting was recent, the bond formed immediately, even if neither of you yet recognize it. A strange quirk unique to his kind. Hence why fate acted to bring you together, or perhaps, in this case, you could blame the stars. Whatever the case, you found each other, a link between you formed, and that is why you could access the relic.”
“You have the orb. I don’t see why you need us.”
“The Zodiac is needed so we might research what makes him a star warrior. If we can reproduce the change in others, the applications will be endless and financially lucrative.”
“Test all you want, dumb fuck,” Scorpio spat. “Being a Zodiac isn’t something you can inject into someone.”
“I’m sure you think so, but I have some of the best scientists working with me. If there is a way to mimic the process that changed you, we will find it.”
“You have me. Why take Rebecca?”
“One, because her well-being will depend on your cooperation. My understanding is that bonded pairs don’t like to see their other half suffer. But the main reason we needed Dr. Guthrie is because she is the one who will open the orb.”
At his statement, she blinked and blurted out, “Excuse me?”
“Don’t play hard of hearing. I have it on good authority you will open it.”
“And exactly how do you expect me to do that?” She flexed her fingers. “Pretty sure my blunt nails won’t even scratch the surface.”
“Don’t be so sure of that. The orb isn’t behaving like an object of this world would. Despite repeated attempts while you napped overnight, we’ve not managed to penetrate it, and not for a lack of trying. It cannot be x-rayed or scanned. We’ve tried cutting it with a metal-toothed saw, a diamond blade, a drill bit, even a laser. Acid just rolls off. We tried crushing it in a compacter, but it broke the machine. It neither heats nor cools, even though we submerged it in liquid nitrogen. Nothing we’ve tried even marred its surface.”
“Maybe it’s not meant to open.”