Barnaby stood on the other side of the glass. Youri looked at him, his face completely expressionless. After a moment, Barnaby turned toward the exit room and shouted, "Hey, what's wrong with him? He looks like he just saw a ghost."
Malden walked slowly toward Barnaby and stopped beside him, both men staring at Youri through the glass. Then Malden spoke calmly, "He wanted to relieve himself of pain, and this is the result of that."
Barnaby frowned and pulled out his pack of cigarettes, sliding one between his fingers and lighting it. Malden glanced at him and said, "I'm sorry, sir, you're not allowed to smoke in here."
Barnaby gave him a menacing glare. As he exhaled smoke, he turned his head back toward the glass and said, "So he took the coward's way out, huh."
Malden adjusted his glasses. "Enduring his pain was mentally challenging. Anyone else in his place would have broken and gone insane long ago. The fact that he's still functioning is a miracle in itself."
Barnaby exhaled smoke again. "So you made him this way."
Malden cut in quickly. "It was a mutual decision."
Barnaby flicked his cigarette away and began walking off. Without turning back, he said, "I expect him capable and ready like he used to be. I'm leaving in two days, so you'd better get to it."
As Barnaby left, Malden turned back toward Youri. He watched him closely; the entire time, Youri hadn't made a single gesture. Malden tapped the glass, and the door to Youri's chamber slid open. Malden stepped inside and sat on the edge of Youri's bed. Looking at him, he said, "So the world needs you now. It's a shame. You truly were a worthy specimen."
With those words, Zayn and Jean entered the chamber room. They approached Youri, unlocked his restraints, and escorted him out. Malden remained behind, standing in the doorway of the chamber, his eyes drifting over the piles of books scattered everywhere. Youri had been alone in that room for more than three years. The other test subjects, EH17, EH26, and EH33, had long since been lost, broken by the intense testing and the sheer amount of drugs forced into them.
As Malden walked out, a thought crossed his mind. Never in a million years did I think I would see Project Infinity with my own eyes, let alone examine and test it. He reached the corridor's glass view overlooking open space and stopped there. I hope, for our sake, that god does not truly exist, because if it does, that boy may very well become our devil.
Zayn and Jean placed Youri onto the operating table. Malden entered shortly after, walking slowly with his hands in his pockets. He stepped closer to Youri and shone a torch into his left eye. Malden raised his voice. "EH36. EH36, are you in there?"
Malden's voice echoed through Youri's mind, deep within his subconscious. Youri's body drifted in a vast, dark sea. He floated weightlessly, naked and frail, his long brown hair spreading around his face as his eyes remained closed. Malden's voice echoed through the watery void.
Back in the lab, Malden softened his tone. "Youri."
Youri's pupil shifted.
"Youri," Malden said again. "Do you remember Volar?"
Youri's pupil shifted once more. "There you are," Malden murmured.
In the watery world, memories flooded Youri's mind. His home world appeared in fragments. He opened his mouth, bubbles escaping as flashes of Lira's face surfaced, then Emma, then Liam. He was running beneath summer skies, laughing, until the image shattered. Suddenly he stood in the Institute of Potential lab, hearing Flavio's final words before the basement exploded. Darkness swallowed him, and when he opened his eyes again, he was draped over Thirty-Five's back, being carried through a cold, snowy forest.
He closed his eyes, and when they opened again, he was in a warehouse, moving cargo onto ships with Liam and Six. Another blink, and he found himself inside a crate as Terrian soldiers stormed the ship for inspection. He closed his eyes once more and opened them aboard the shuttle taking him to Altex, stepping out to be greeted by Malden.
Again he closed his eyes, and this time he was in Leonora's room. They sat together as she read aloud. She looked at him and said, "Thirty-Six, you made my biggest wish come true. I'm glad you snuck into my room that day. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart."
Bubbles poured from Youri's mouth in the watery darkness. He opened his eyes one final time and found himself in the operating room, giving his blood to Leonora. He looked at her frail face as the machines hummed around them. Then he opened his eyes again in his subconscious, his mouth wide as massive bubbles escaped him.
Youri gasped awake. He forced himself upright, sweat pouring down his face. His breathing was heavy as he stared at his trembling hands. Suddenly, the door to the room hissed open. Youri turned his head and froze.
Barnaby stood there, a cigarette in his mouth, hands in his pockets. He walked over and sat beside the bed. He took one last drag and flicked the cigarette away. "I see," Barnaby said. "So you're finally back."
Youri lunged out of the bed, pain crashing into him all at once as he collapsed onto the floor. His breath came in ragged gasps as his green eyes locked onto Barnaby.
Barnaby smiled. "That's how you welcome me after all this time?" He stood up. "I've got good news for you. I got you a new job."
Youri stared at him, shocked. "What are you doing here? What do you want from me?"
"What do you think I'm doing?" Barnaby replied.
Youri slowly pushed himself up, using the bed for support. "What more do you want from me?"
Barnaby pulled another cigarette from his pack and lit it, inhaling deeply before exhaling smoke. He looked straight at Youri. "Hell isn't forever, you know."
Youri frowned, confused.
"To truly appreciate life," Barnaby continued, "you have to lose everything first. And you, my boy, have nothing left. So take this as your payment for all that suffering. You're free now."
Barnaby walked toward the door. As it hissed open, he turned back one last time. "My ship leaves in eight hours. Hop on if you want out of this hell."