"Oh...! A Grunt, you say?"
The "fortune teller" lady showed me her full visage that had previously been hidden by the hood of her dull gray cloak. No doubt about it... she was indeed beautiful, but... I couldn't exactly admire her beauty as she was showing me not just the wicked smile that sent chills down my spine, but also her beautiful eyes' irises were shining deep red... akin to a predator that had just found their next meal.
I was quite shocked and taken aback, not just by her wicked expression, but also by the sudden aura that she was emitting... an aura that radiated both wickedness and malicious intent.
If I wasn't convinced from being forcefully held down and pulled, this dark aura of hers that she was radiating was solid proof: this woman was not normal nor was she human... and I should get the hell out of here!
I tried to run away, but my body again suddenly felt sluggish and stiff, and it felt even worse than before, as even my own lips were shut tight! This... witch... might have cast the same spell that she had used to "tie" me down. Or worse... I might have just been paralyzed from fear at seeing and feeling this dark aura radiating from her.
I could only watch with wide eyes, an expression of fear and horror evident on my face, as this witch of a woman then stood up from her booth, casually walked around it, and now stood in front of paralyzed me. Her eyes still held the deep red glow, and she had an expression of both interest and mischief. Not a good combination.
I could also finally see the full picture of her cloaked figure. Her dark gray cloak was really hugging her well-endowed figure nicely...
'Not now, libido!' I chastised my own libido inside my head, which was not just filled with dread but also briefly entertained inappropriate thoughts at the worst timing possible.
Seeing my conflicted expression, she seemed to be amused instead as she giggled. "Fufufu... don't be afraid, dear traveler." She tried to calm me down, but her mischievous smile and shining red eyes weren't convincing. I was even more panicked than before, which she found even more amusing as she giggled again.
This woman then raised her right hand, and suddenly, said right hand was engulfed in a dark-flame-like aura!
'Shit! Is she going to kill me?!' I panicked even more from seeing her flame-covered hand. I might have just met my end here, being killed by a Witch in this dark alleyway while still being an unemployed deadbeat.
I tried and tried to force my body to move, but no matter what, it wouldn't budge to my will! The only thing that was moving was my own facial expression, which was most likely displaying an expression of pure terror of what was about to happen to me.
This witch of a woman saw my expression of terror and let out a giggle accompanied by the same wicked smile. Then she began to speak to me again, "Now, now, I'm just going to give you a little 'token' to help you on your journey," She explained, trying to calm me down again, but her mischievous smile remained. She then moved her flaming hand closer to me.
'Token'? What token?! All I saw here was just her dark-flaming hand getting closer and closer to my chest!
Soon after... her flaming hand finally touched my chest, and it felt... hot! My chest felt the extreme heat of the flame, as if I was being branded by a branding iron...! I could only watch with a horrified and pained expression as both my body and lips were paralyzed by the Witch, who was currently "branding" me with this so-called "token".
The Witch herself ignored my silent, pained expression and instead focused on "branding" her "token" onto me. I couldn't do anything to prevent her from whatever she was doing to me, nor could I yell out in pain. As the pain became too unbearable, my mind went blank.
After what felt like an eternity, the searing heat finally stopped. My mind snapped back to reality quickly. I directed my attention back to the witch. Her hand was still on my chest, but it wasn't covered with the ominous dark flame from before. She still had that mischievous smile, but her eyes were hidden behind the hood of her cloak. She was rubbing my chest gently... as if she was checking her handiwork.
Seeing that she was satisfied with whatever she had done to me, she let go of her hand on my chest. She then turned around and sauntered back to her booth. Unfortunately, the way her hips swayed in a mesmerizing rhythm was both alluring and irksome to me...
As soon as she reached her booth, she turned around again and faced me. She raised both of her hands... and then clapped. Suddenly, I was able to move again! My body, which had been "spellbound" by this witch of a woman, was free once more. I quickly checked my chest where the witch had burned me.
I checked my clothes... and found that there was no burning mark. No burnt smell, nor any black charred marking. It was still my regular old formal suit that I always wore for interviews. I then quickly checked my chest under my clothes... and there was also no burn mark on my skin.
'What the hell...?' I cursed in my thoughts. I was pretty sure that this witch had just used a flame-covered hand to "brand" me with whatever "token" she had mentioned before. But... there was no such mark on me... Then I looked back at the witch... and she was just standing there, showing me the same mischievous smile as before, her arms crossed casually in a way that emphasized her well-endowed chest.
"Now, dear traveler..." She suddenly began to speak. I was startled, and then I soon put up my guard, anticipating whatever this witch was planning next. She raised her left arm, and I braced myself for a confrontation... only for said left arm to move outward. I looked at her left hand and found that she was actually casually pointing her left hand toward a direction. The direction itself? I looked to where she was pointing... and it was the way out of the alleyway that I was supposed to go.
"Go forward, toward your destiny, dear traveler," she simply said to me.
"Huh...?" I dumbfoundedly muttered, bewildered by what she had just said in a normal tone. Not sultry, not playful, but actually serious. She still had a smile on her face, but it wasn't the same mischievous smile as before. Just a normal smile.
I was still taken aback by her sudden "normal" behavior. I became confused, not knowing how to react to all that had just happened and what this woman had done to me.
Was this all... just an illusion? Did my mind play a trick on me...? Did this woman actually do something to me...? I was quite confused about what just happened.
But then suddenly, I heard the voice of the witch woman, "Go on then, dear traveler." She urged me to go. I was startled by her sudden order, but... I followed through with with it. I slowly walked in the direction where she was pointing: the way out of the alleyway which I was originally supposed to go.
My walk slowly started to gain momentum... then my walking pace became a running phase. I quickly ran as fast as my legs could toward the light coming from outside the alleyway.
'I GOTTA GET OUT OF HERE!' My inner thoughts screamed at me. I did not look back, as fear clouded my mind, never to interact with this witch ever again. I slowly but surely got closer to the light... and then, I finally reached it. The light blinded me as I entered it.
I finally escaped from that witch. But... I did not realize where I was standing.
"Hey! What are you doing?!"
"Is he crazy?!"
"Look out!"
I could hear a bunch of people yelling. I didn't know why... but it felt like they were all screaming at me. Then... I heard the sound of cars beeping.
*Beep Beep Beep*
And then suddenly, the sound of engines could also be heard. Something fast and quite large just passed by me, accompanied by the sound of a rapid gust of wind. 'Hold on... is this what I think it is...?' I soon realized where I was currently standing, as my vision finally came back after being blinded: an asphalt road. I was standing in the middle of the road.
I was about to process where I was, but I was not given any time for that, as suddenly, I could hear the sound of heavy honking. I looked at the source of the honking and found a large truck speeding fast toward me.
Suddenly, my vision blurred, and the world seemed to shift and spin around me. Everything tilted at an impossible angle, and I felt weightless, soaring through the air in a disorienting whirl.
Through my hazy vision, I glimpsed people gasping in shock and horror, their expressions reflecting the gravity of my situation. I realized... I had been hurled through the air by the speeding truck. A wave of excruciating pain washed over me, and my consciousness began slipping away.
However, before I lost consciousness, a figure materialized in my blurry sight: the Witch. She stood amidst the gasping crowd, wearing the same unsettling expression that had haunted me.
A wicked smile adorned her face.
Soon after... everything turned dark.
HIATUS. Not much to say here other than it's not working out.
"... full... stable... vital..."
"... what... status... enchantment..."
I heard... voices....
I heard... people... talking....
I slowly opened my eyes, my consciousness gradually returning. The world before me was a blur of sounds and shadows. Slowly, shapes began to form in the dimness. Figures loomed over me, their features obscured by darkness.
A group of people stood before me, their appearances indistinct. Neither age nor gender could be discerned clearly, as the scant light sources only allowed vague glimpses of their figures. But... even in my dimmed vision, one thing stood out: 'White...' I thought to myself, noticing that they were all clad in pristine white lab jackets or coats.
Turning my gaze to another point of interest within my dimmed vision, I discerned the source of the scarce light: dim illuminations emanating from the sparse ceiling lights and high-tech equipment. These machines softly glowed in the gloomy darkness.
'Am I inside a laboratory...?' I thought to myself as I connected the two pieces of the puzzle. I witnessed what I presumed to be scientists working and discussing with each other. I didn't have much of a clue about what they were doing right now, nor could I actually hear what they were saying. But... with that being said... they sometimes glanced at me, as if they were checking on me...
Then, I surveyed my surroundings even more. I tried looking to the left... and found another person beside me. In fact, there were not just one person, but a bunch of others, creating a long row of people.
'What...?' I thought to myself, dumbfounded and surprised. I was surprised not just by the existence of this row of people, but also by what they were. These people... while indeed they were lined up in a perfect row, they all stood motionless, as if they were sleeping while standing. Each of them was encased within glass tubes, resembling something straight out of a Sci-Fi laboratory experiment.
The other thing that really stood out from them... was that they were all dressed in dark gray to black attire. No... they were not exactly attire either, but... they all looked like skin-tight suits, covering them from their fully-covered heads to most likely the edges of their toes.
These were something you would mostly see in fictional comic book characters. But for these people... their skin-tight dark gray or black suits made them look like the villains from a superhero comic. No... to be precise... they looked like the goons or grunts of the supervillain.
'Grunt...?' That single word stood out in my mind. Then suddenly... The memory of a voice from a certain 'Witch' crossed my mind.
"Oh...! A Grunt, you say?"
Followed after that, flashes of memories flooded my mind.
Public Park, kids, Heroes vs. Villain, grunt, alleyway, the "fortune teller" lady, dark flame, the searing pains, running, being run over...
Wicked smile.
The sudden flood of memories washed over me like a relentless tide, each one hitting me with a force that felt like physical blows. I clutched my head instinctively, hoping to quell the mounting pain that accompanied each memory. In particular... the last one... The wicked smile of the Witch. Remembering that smile... caused the most pain in my head.
"Hey! Subject No. 703 is exhibiting abnormal behavior!" I heard a shout, likely from one of the white-coated scientists. Soon after, hurried footsteps approached, presumably from other scientists gathering around the caller.
"What's the problem?" asked the first scientist to arrive, addressing the one who had shouted. Still wincing from the massive headache caused by memories flooding my brain, I could make out several white-coated individuals now gathered before me.
"Look! Subject No. 703! He has awoken!" exclaimed the scientist who had first alerted the others. 'Subject... 703'? I vaguely recalled hearing that number shouted just before. Who were they referring to?
'Is it me...? Am I... one of their subjects...? Am I... Subject No... 703...?' I pondered while still enduring the headache, trying to grasp why I was here in this dim laboratory, surrounded by scientists and possibly other 'subjects' like me. I also realized I wasn't breathing normally; I was inside some sort of clear watery liquid in a tube, similar to the other subject beside me.
"That's absurd! Our enchantment hasn't finished yet, and they should all still be in a deep trance," declared one of the scientists to the others. They began discussing among themselves, likely deliberating on what to do with me.
'Enchantment'...? What had these scientists done to me...? Then, I noticed my arm, which I had been using to quell the headache; it was covered entirely in a dark gray, almost black material, just like the other 'subjects' beside me.
It felt... odd. It seemed like I was wearing a skin-tight suit, but simultaneously, I could feel my own skin directly touching the liquid substance I was submerged in. Shifting my attention to my other arm, I found it also covered in the same material.
As I examined my body further, I realized my entire body was enveloped in this dark material, from my torso to the tips of my toes. If I had to guess, my head was likely covered too, like the other 'subjects' beside me. This dark material hugged my skin tightly, giving me the sensation of being a character from a comic book, clad in a skin-tight suit.
Not to mention... I seemed to have abs now. It felt... odd, a complex mix of emotions flooding through me. I had been fairly thin with little muscle definition, but now my body appeared toned, as if I had been hitting the gym regularly for 1 to 2 years. I also noticed numbers labeled onto the dark material on my left chest, presumably indicating the subject number. '703...' I read the upside-down number with a mix of bewilderment and unease.
Out of curiosity, I attempted to touch and feel my newfound muscle mass, but as soon as I touched my chest...
"Now, now, I'm just going to give you a little 'token' to help you on your journey."
Dark flame. Searing pain on my chest.
Wicked smile.
Flashes of memories suddenly flooded my mind again, reminding me of my encounter with that 'Witch' of a woman. She had "branded" me with her so-called "token". As soon as those memories began to flood into my head, the painful headache returned again, halting any further thought inside my head. Not only that... My chest started to feel the same burning sensation of that dreaded memory of mine.
I clutched both of my head and also my chest, to suppress the hollow pain that I felt because of that memory. I couldn't talk nor scream in pain in this watery-filled tube. The only thing that came out from my mouth was just bubbles going upward.
The scientists that had been discussing in front of my tube had also noticed my pained reaction. "Quick! Check his status!" One of them urged their fellow scientists to check on my... status? I couldn't see clearly what they were doing right now, especially when I was in this agonizing pained state, but I could somewhat vaguely see that one of them pulled out a tablet gadget and began fiddling with it.
"Look here. High level of pain indicators on the area of his head and torso," the scientist holding the tablet stated to their fellow scientist. The few of the scientists also peered through the tablet that most likely showed my 'status'. They soon began to discuss with each other again.
"What should we do about him? Up his anesthesia dose?" One of them suggested. I didn't really want to get knocked out again and kept getting experimented on by these white-coated scientists... but being relieved of this painful agony was starting to get tempting.
"Hold it." A commanding voice suddenly interjected through the scientists' discussion, denying me of my salvation. The scientists fell into silence, then turned and directed their attention to an approaching figure. This figure was also obscured by the dim darkness of the room, but... *clack, click, clack*, the sound of heels' clacking could be heard, even from inside my tube.
"Ms. Victoria, ma'am." Many of the scientists addressed the approaching figure with respect, revealing the name of said figure. I tried to force open my eyes to see the approaching figure. While still basked in the darkness of the room, the figure was clearly wearing the same pristine white coat that the other scientists were wearing, indicating that this figure was one of them as well.
Slowly but surely, the figure's silhouette began to look clearer with each step she took, revealing the feminine and ladylike figure of the approaching woman. Her white coat hugged her well-endowed figure quite nicely, that even I was a bit mesmerized by it... but the hollow pain that I was still experiencing in both my head and chest interrupted any further thought about this woman's charm.
As the woman scientist approached the scientist group, they all stood up straight in her presence. The scientist who had been holding the tablet then offered it to the woman. She began to examine and fiddle with the tablet.
"Interesting..." The woman scientist commented on what she was seeing on the tablet. Then, she began to walk closer to the tube where I was submerged. The other scientists made way for her to approach me, signifying her importance. As she came closer, her visage became clearer to me: A beautiful, bespectacled blonde woman.
"Good morning, Subject... No... Grunt No. 703." The beautiful blonde scientist addressed me with a mischievous smile.
HIATUS. Not much to say here other than it's not working out.
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